In this film we speak about one of such places: a “special zone” or a “shooting range” called Butovo, founded in 1937 and situated in Moscow. 21.000 people were executed here from 1937 to1953, about a thousand of them were priests, monks and bishops.
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Butovo Ground
TITLE: Butovo Ground
SUBTITLE: And enduring to the end will find salvation
FORMAT: DVCAM
RUNTIME: 25’ 45”
LANGUAGE: Russian (original) – English available for August 2007 Subtitles in: not yet available
GENRE: Docu-fiction
CONTENTS:In the history of repression of the soviet regime, 1937 is known as the year for the most severe and wide-ranging persecution. According to statistics, 688 thousand people were executed in the Soviet Union during 1937. Most of them were shot and secretly buried – their burial places were discovered only in recent years. In this film we speak about one of such places: a “special zone” or a “shooting range” called Butovo, founded in 1937 and situated in Moscow. 21.000 people were executed here from 1937 to1953, about a thousand of them were priests, monks and bishops. It is quite possible that there is no other place in Russia or anywhere in the world where so many priests were killed. More than 200 of these people were canonized by the Russian Orthodox Church as martyrs. For the whole soviet period this place was closely guarded by the KGB. Its gates were opened for the victims’ relatives only on June 7th 1993. A church was built on the execution ground. Its vicar is a grandson of Victor Ambartsumov, a priest who was executed here, and whose tragic and heroic story takes a special place in the film. Interviews with the historians and testimonies of the victims’ relatives, many of whom were imprisoned themselves, enrich the film.
© “Father’s House" Foundation, 2002
