International Competition

The eccentric Ukrainian artist Fedor Alexandrovich was just four years old in April 1986, when the nuclear reactor in Chernobyl exploded. He was evacuated following the disaster, but the radiation had already permeated his bones. He returns to what is now a ghost town with radiation readings 10 times higher than normal to visit the gigantic Duga 3 radar station, which stands next to the former nuclear power station. Duga 3 was part of a radar system that became famous for interfering with world radio communications by emitting a repetitive tapping noise that sounded like a woodpecker. Despite having cost billions, Duga was never as effective as had been anticipated, and Alexandrovich stumbles on a conspiracy theory that links the huge antenna with the nuclear disaster. Was the explosion caused on purpose? Putting his own life in danger, the artist is determined to unravel the truth behind the disaster. But The Russian Woodpecker is about much more than Chernobyl alone: the sense of paranoia and foreboding accompanying Alexandrovich’s search for the truth is reflected in the increasing unrest and threat of war in Kiev. The roots of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine are revealed – from the 1930s genocide in the gulags to the recent uprisings.