‘Welded Together’ Acquired by Lightdox Ahead of Sheffield DocFest Premiere (EXCLUSIVE)

Lightdox has acquired the global sales rights to “Welded Together,” directed by Belarusian filmmaker Anastasiya Miroshnichenko, which will have its world premiere as part of the Sheffield DocFest Intl. Competition. The film is described as “a haunting study of resilience, sacrifice and sisterhood.”

Katya is a young woman who works as a welder. Abandoned as a little girl, she embarks on a personal journey to reunite with her lost family – to weld it back together, just like she welds metal at work. Despite the pain and disappointment she experiences along the way, Katya’s love for her little half-sister drives her to protect the child’s fragile world from a harsh reality.

Miroshnichenko said: “The idea for ‘Welded Together’ came from a short news video about a young female welder. There was no information about her private life, only about her unusual job. But something about this young woman captured my attention, and I couldn’t get her out of my mind.

“When we finally met, and I got to know her better, her life experience resonated with me on a deeply personal level. The film tells a moving story, revealing that sometimes the most difficult decisions we make are also the truest expressions of love.”

The deal was brokered between Anna Berthollet of Lightdox and Valérie Montmartin of Little Big Story.

Berthollet said Miroshnichenko “delivers a film of rare cinematic beauty and emotional depth — intimate, unflinching and profoundly human. Katya’s story, both tender and harrowing, captures the quiet heroism of those who love and protect in the most impossible circumstances.” Berthollet added that Miroshnichenko’s “boldness as a filmmaker, her ability to bring light to invisible struggles with compassion and artistry, is exactly why we are proud to stand behind her work.”

Montmartin and Raphaël Pelissou of Little Big Story added: “Since discovering the project and meeting Anastasiya at IDFA 2022, we’ve been deeply moved by the film’s striking beauty and raw intensity, and by the resilience of its protagonist, Katya – a reflection of Anastasiya’s own courage and talent as a filmmaker. ‘Welded Together’ confronts harsh realities while holding onto hope, and its deeply human, female-driven perspective embodies the kind of cinema we are proud to champion at Little Big Story.”

Cinematography is by Pavel Romanenya, and editing by Kasia Boniecka and Stanislav Kalilaska. The music is composed by Rui Reis Maia.

The film was produced by Montmartin and Pelissou for Little Big Story in France; Iris Lammertsma and Babet Touwfor for Witfilm in the Netherlands; and Anton Iffland Stettner and Eva Kuperman for Stenola Productions in Belgium. The film was made with the participation of France Télévisions, in association with BBC Storyville, and in co-production with RTBF Télévision Belge.

Miroshnichenko graduated from the Belarusian State Academy of Arts, where she majored in documentary film directing. Her first full-length documentary “Crossroads”(2014) is a philosophical story about a homeless artist. It premiered at the 30th Warsaw Intl. Film Festival, winning the special mention jury award and audience award.

Her next full-length documentary “Debut”(2017) is an intimate look at the lives of imprisoned women in Belarus, and premiered at the 30th edition of IDFA in Amsterdam. “Debut” was selected as Belarus’s official submission for the Oscars in the category of best foreign language film, and was also included in the Academy’s documentary section.