Mina / Masha Bordovskikh / USA / 20 min

While the world is under global quarantine, a teenage girl, Mina, writes a story on how she overcame an eating disorder after rediscovering herself and falling in love for the first time.

– Masha Bordovskikh

My name is Masha Bordovskikh, and two cities I can call home are Moscow and New York. I’m a daydreamer, who lives to imagine things and then turn them into reality. Just like I did with my first big project Mina!

Director Statement

I moved from Russia to the States, when I was 14. Back then, I could barely speak English, had no idea how to celebrate Thanksgiving, or what’s a PB&J sandwich. In high school, I yearned to find myself but adjusting to a new culture wasn’t easy – it almost killed me. Facing anorexia and not understanding who I am was terrifying. Yet, I did it — I recovered and rediscovered myself. I learned English, tried PB&J (love it!), ate turkey for Thanksgiving, got into my dream school — NYU, studied photography and film, found my #1 passion (screenwriting), and one night, a few years ago, I realized — I want to tell my story. I want to write my own script. And I did it too. “Mina”, ladies and gentlemen. This story isn’t just about me. It’s about powerful women, love, vulnerability, resilience, and a marvelous journey called life. It’s about silent suffering, emotional distress, and subconscious self-destruction, however, it is also about letting go of the past, finding a soulmate, and discovering hope.

P.S. Initially, “Mina” was written as a movie script, but I’ve decided to expand it and turn it into a TV series. Currently, there are 5 fully written episodes (approximately 60 pages each). The story is complete. It has beginning, middle, and end. This short film acts as a proof-of-concept and reveals the story’s essential elements.