Julia Loktev's Documentary 'My Undesirable Friends' Chronicles Russian Journalists in Exile

Director Julia Loktev's documentary 'My Undesirable Friends: Part I - Last Air in Moscow' premiered at the New York Film Festival in 2024. The film follows journalists from Russia's last independent news network TV Rain as they navigate threats to free speech following the 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Streaming on Mubi since April 2024, the work captures their struggle against government repression. Loktev, a Russian-American filmmaker, conducted interviews in 2022 after TV Rain's closure during the war's first week. She traveled from Istanbul to various countries filming exiled journalists who fled Russia. The documentary features intimate moments showing journalists at home with their families, revealing how humor coexists with serious circumstances. Loktev mentions political prisoners like theater director Zhenya Berkovich and journalist Ivan Safronov, who faces 22 years for treason. She also references the musical group Stoptime from St. Petersburg, whose members were arrested for performing songs by foreign agents. The film's second part is scheduled for release in fall 2024.