Natalia

​​29-year-old Natalia has spent several years as a novice in a monastery of the Byzantine Catholic Church in the United States. The daughter of a military man, and a former student of mechanical engineering at a prestigious school, she has left behind her life of excitement and one-night stands to devote herself to a single unconditional and eternal love: that of God. The filmmaker and director of photography Elizabeth Mirzaei films Natalia's final months before her ordination, during which the young woman is filled with doubts and questions regarding her sacrifice. Supported by Mother Superior Petra and Father McLoughlin, she finds answers to her doubts in contemplation, prayer and words. In sumptuous black and white and a 4:3 aspect ratio that exalts her protagonist, Mirzaei manages to portray the invisible workings inside Natalia, while capturing her inner transformation process. The film implicitly reveals the Natalia of the past, who will never disappear: a young woman who has decided to live her life intensely, regardless of the path.

Aurélien Marsais