Die Standing Up

The narrative structure of this film confronts the viewer's preconceptions with its surprising twists and turns, and its combination of archive footage, interviews and observational cinema. This portrait of disabled activist Irina Layevska shows her as she goes about her daily life with her life partner Nelyda. Old photos and film clips provide a glimpse into the past of this now almost 50-year-old woman. In the 1960s, her militant communist parents were involved in campaigns and gave their children a rigid communist upbringing. From her early youth onwards, Irina suffered from a serious disease that confined her to a wheelchair. Now she is also blind, making her even more dependent on her partner Nelyda. It is likely that the misfortune and discrimination that she dealt with as a youth gave rise to her militancy. In the 1980s, Irina became involved in solidarity campaigns for Cuba, in which she developed into a single-minded leader inspired by the ideas of Ernesto "Che" Guevara. Her health is now increasingly fragile, and Che's ideals of a new socialist human remain unrealized. Nonetheless, Irina's personal battle against discrimination and prejudice continues unabated.