1000 O
Directed by Barbara (alias Baraba-pe) Peikert; Barbara Peikert; Baraba-pe Peikert;
Switzerland · 2026 · 7 min · Archive footage; Culture; Documentary fiction; Gender Equity; Relationship; Surreal; Women;
Submitted to RTV International Film Festival 2026Synopsis
An artificial umbilical cord inflates into cartoon bubbles with embryonic thoughts of a fetus.
About the film
Director Statement “1000 O” explores the boundaries between perception and imagination, and how, in many cases today, reality surpasses fiction and fiction becomes reality. The belly button and the umbilical cord are the embodying parts and the core of the protagonist. They are present in the background to create an approximation of the fictional main character. Then speech bubbles transform the scenes into an interior perspective. When I look at my belly button, I don't feel any physical dependence; my feelings are no longer there. The idea is reminiscent of food in amniotic sacs and baby bumps that belong to the belly button. The belly button and the umbilical cord emphasize the natural dependence between the unborn and the grown up, as if they were stretched forever and everywhere, not just for the first needs until birth. Humans are preoccupied with what protects and nourishes them, and their lives oscillate between castration anxiety and love satisfaction, distrusting eternal reminders of thirst for food and glorifying automatic feeding. The pain and misery of being human can be reconnected and reinterpreted over and over again, offering us a variety of emotions about origins and separations. Composer's statement The composition “1000 O ‘Beat the Palpitations’” is inspired by the sound vibrations of a didgeridoo, an aerophone that produces a sound element with vocal and fundamental frequency effects and visualizes an emotional “human cosmos.”
Official link
Publicity materials supplied or expressly authorized by the rights holder. Publication is separate from festival selection.
RTV International Film Festival — Inaugural Online Edition · 2026