One month
One month
July 15, 2026
Today marks exactly one month since we signed the agreement for the cinema. One month since this dream became a reality. And one month since we launched our crowdfunding campaign.
Over the years, I've made more than ten short films and three feature-length documentaries. And, quite unexpectedly, I've come to realize that this month of crowdfunding has been more challenging for me than any film I've ever made.
Filmmaking is a long, demanding, obsessive process. It's full of unexpected turns, instability, pain, highs and lows. But crowdfunding demands something entirely different. It asks you to let go of control almost completely. Every day you have dozens of conversations and messages. You ask for support, explain your vision, inspire people, wait for replies, and at the same time, you have to remain present, grounded, and keep believing. Sometimes it feels like those two states can't exist together. Yet somehow, they have to. And perhaps that's exactly what this experience is teaching me.
There's another layer to all of this. We're not only running a crowdfunding campaign, we're also making a documentary about the birth of this cinema. In a way, that makes the process even more difficult. But strangely, it also makes it easier.
Because when you find yourself in the position of an observer, you slowly begin to understand that there isn't one particular outcome you have to achieve. The point isn't the outcome. The point is presence. The point is the process itself.
Today marks exactly one month since we signed the agreement for the cinema. One month since this dream became a reality. And one month since we launched our crowdfunding campaign.
Over the years, I've made more than ten short films and three feature-length documentaries. And, quite unexpectedly, I've come to realize that this month of crowdfunding has been more challenging for me than any film I've ever made.
Filmmaking is a long, demanding, obsessive process. It's full of unexpected turns, instability, pain, highs and lows. But crowdfunding demands something entirely different. It asks you to let go of control almost completely. Every day you have dozens of conversations and messages. You ask for support, explain your vision, inspire people, wait for replies, and at the same time, you have to remain present, grounded, and keep believing. Sometimes it feels like those two states can't exist together. Yet somehow, they have to. And perhaps that's exactly what this experience is teaching me.
There's another layer to all of this. We're not only running a crowdfunding campaign, we're also making a documentary about the birth of this cinema. In a way, that makes the process even more difficult. But strangely, it also makes it easier.
Because when you find yourself in the position of an observer, you slowly begin to understand that there isn't one particular outcome you have to achieve. The point isn't the outcome. The point is presence. The point is the process itself.
The point is being surrounded by your people: the ones you trust completely with your life, the ones who will always stand beside you when things become difficult. The people with whom you can provoke one another, raise the hardest questions imaginable, challenge each other's assumptions. The people who can reflect you honestly, offer their perspective, and at the same time receive yours.
Maybe that's what makes this journey meaningful, not only whether we reach a particular goal, but who we become while walking toward it.
I'm curious to see where this path will lead us and what else it will teach us.
For now, wish us luck. Next week, we begin the active restoration of the cinema with renewed energy. There is still so much work ahead.
Maybe that's what makes this journey meaningful, not only whether we reach a particular goal, but who we become while walking toward it.
I'm curious to see where this path will lead us and what else it will teach us.
For now, wish us luck. Next week, we begin the active restoration of the cinema with renewed energy. There is still so much work ahead.
Efim Graboy
