The Missing
Directed by Masha Zivago
Russia · 2025 · 39 min · drama, surreal, experimental, narrative
Submitted to RTV International Film Festival 2026Synopsis
"The Missing" is an oneiric reinterpretation of Franz Kafka’s novel "Amerika", exploring the search for purpose, belonging, and a place in the world. During a dreamlike journey, the film follows K., a young man navigating an unfamiliar reality full of weird encounters, where the future lies in the field of the incomprehensible. Rather than retelling Kafka’s narrative, the film transforms its themes into a contemplation of displacement, loneliness, and the human desire to find meaning. The Missing creates an inner landscape and invites you on a path going through uncertainty in search of a place to exist.
Director(s)
Masha Zivago (b. 1996) is a multidisciplinary artist. Born in St. Petersburg, she lives and works in Moscow. She graduated from the Individual Directing Workshop of Boris Yukhananov (2025). She participated in performances, stage productions and a few films. She's a professional literary translator and a PhD alumna. Masha works at the intersection of theatre, film, performance, and literature. She wants to broaden her own perception by exploring "a new processuality" approach and the limitations of various media.
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RTV International Film Festival — Inaugural Online Edition · 2026