Roosenberg

Four Marian Franciscan nuns are the last residents of Roosenberg Abbey in Belgium. Built in 1975, this sleek building will soon have to give up its religious vocation. Young documentary filmmaker Ingel Vaikla records the sober lives of the nuns before the abbey disappears forever. She shows how, over many years, their lives have become entwined with the abbey. We only the see the interior of this exceptional building, in grayish, beautifully-lit shots that pass by at a calm and contemplative pace. In a letter to the abbey’s residents, Vaikla tells the nuns about the changes in her life that her visit to Roosenberg has brought about. Silence plays a major role in this film—even the commentary is silent. Form and content coincide perfectly in this meditative story of the relationship of man to architecture. Roosenberg is also an ode to the peace and order of life in an abbey.