Meno avilys

Frigid winter in a war-devastated, present-day city. Several years have passed since the destruction, and the city is slowly rebuilding. A thirty-year-old guy is living as a squatter in an apartment with a group of strangers. He struggles to survive and also to find a little more comfort in this rough setting. One night he nearly burns the flat down, hoping for a warmer sleep. His roommates start hating him, so the guy has to find another shelter.

Human beings are the kings of all animals, at least if you ask us humans. Our vanity is given something to mirror itself in, but does not escape without a scratch or two in this documentary, which observes a taxidermist, a deer farmer and a museum curator at work. Three jobs that have one thing in common: turning animals into aesthetic objects, alive as well as dead. When the work is done properly, it is impossible to tell the difference. Dead pets are mummified. At the zoological museum, the animals' glassy eyes stare back at us from the showcases. Even a plastic alligator has its natural place in the human master plan.

Vilnius is a city of notable historical heritage and unique character currently undergoing considerable changes. Some of the life fragments our camera has recorded are no more. The film, therefore, is a testimony to that which has faded into oblivion, and a glimpse into what is to come.