FEAR (Присутствие)

FEAR (Присутствие, 65 min, 2025) is a Yakutian mystical thriller with horror elements, and the feature-film directorial debut of Apollinaria Degtyareva.

The story follows a reclusive young woman forced into isolation. As frightening, seemingly supernatural events begin unfolding in her apartment, the boundary between reality and nightmare starts to blur. The film stars Anastasia Alexeeva, an actress with the Olonkho Theatre, in her first leading film role.

Date: November, 13 (Friday) at 7pm

Presented by the Russian program / European Studies within the School of Modern Languages and Cultures, HKU

Venue: Lecture Hall, Main Campus

LG1/F – CBC, Chow Yei Ching Building, The University of Hong Kong, Pok Fu Lam

Free admission but important to make a reservation.

SYNOPSIS

City in the year 2020. A reclusive girl lives with her husband

in a small apartment, her only connecting with the outside

world is online—she’s trying to shield herself from danger.

One day, her husband leaves for a business trip, she’s left

all alone and she notices strange changes in her home,

growing stronger by the minute.

The girl is terrified by a mystical presence inside the four

walls, she starts seeing nightmares. She quickly realizes that

the spirit is threatening both her and her husband. Trying to

protect her beloved from the threat, the girl chooses to

make things right before he gets back. However, she

doesn’t have a clue about what is really happening inside

her apartment.

The project won the Work in Progress award at the Spirit of Fire festival and was selected for the main competition at the Mayak Russian film festival. It was also selected for the Bishkek International Film Festival.