‘Tear Gas’ Is a Fiction Film Shot Inside Georgia Anti-Government Protests. And It Is “an Act of Resistance”
A new fiction film, "Tear Gas," directed by Georgian filmmaker Uta Beria, was shot inside real anti-government demonstrations in Tbilisi, blending scripted drama with footage of ongoing protests against the Georgian government. The film follows 16-year-old Elene and her family as they are drawn into the unrest, and is described by its makers as an act of resistance highlighting freedom of expression amid a crackdown protesters fear mirrors Russia's authoritarian path.
The film premieres on 12 August in the Filmmakers of the Present competition at the 79th Locarno Film Festival, having previously won two awards worth €10,000 each at International Film Festival Rotterdam's IFFR Pro industry section. Protests in Tbilisi have continued for more than 600 days, driven largely by opposition to Georgia's "Foreign Agents Law," widely dubbed the "Russia law" for its resemblance to legislation used by Vladimir Putin to suppress civil society. Beria said the five-year production process was hampered by the difficulty of securing funding amid Georgia's turbulent political climate.
- Fiction film "Tear Gas" was filmed amid real Tbilisi protests.
- Premieres 12 August at Locarno Film Festival.
- Reflects 600+ days of unrest over Georgia's "Russia law".
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Georgia has been gripped by anti-government protests for well over a year, largely triggered by a "Foreign Agents Law" that critics say echoes legislation used in Russia to stifle independent media and civil society groups. Many protesters see the law, and the wider crackdown on dissent, as a sign the country is drifting away from the West and towards Moscow's sphere of influence. Tbilisi, the capital, has been the main site of sustained demonstrations.
"Tear Gas" is a new film by Georgian director Uta Beria that mixes a scripted family story with real footage filmed amid these ongoing protests, following a teenage girl and her relatives as events unfold around them. It took around five years to make, partly because of difficulties raising funding in Georgia's unsettled political environment, and has already picked up industry recognition at Rotterdam's film festival before its Locarno premiere.
The film matters as a case study in how art and journalism can intersect during political unrest, raising questions about artistic freedom, the risks faced by filmmakers working in protest zones, and how creative work can document contested events as they happen.