Violeta Raustyte

My documentary began as an exploration of, and curiosity about, my blind grandfather and his experience of memory, perception, and everyday life. I chose to work in black and white in order to focus on movement and gesture.

During the project, I travelled across Lithuania, from Vilnius to Plungė, documenting landscapes, conversations with relatives, local people, artists, and aspects of family history. Through interviews with relatives, I learned more about my family’s past, including their experiences of arriving from Siberia and adapting to life in Lithuania.

Returning to my family’s former home in Žemaičių Kalvarija, in the Plungė district, became an important part of the project. The house has since been sold and will soon be demolished. Entering it felt like stepping into a time capsule filled with traces of memory, absence, and change, with a few belongings still left behind as they once were.

Through documentary and observational filmmaking, my work explores nostalgia, family connection, and the emotional relationship between place, history, and remembrance.