A Trapped Russian Filmmaker Risks Everything to Speak Out

Alexander Sokurov, a world-famous 74-year-old Russian film director, publicly attacked his government's censorship law in December 2025—from inside Russia, where he's been trapped since 2022. His passport was taken by government order. He called the "foreign agents" law humiliating, saying it stops people from living freely. His defiance matters because few prominent figures in Russia dare speak this openly against the Kremlin anymore.