Tucked away deep in the heart of Russia, there is a hidden city where thousands of men, women and children live and work behind barbed-wire fences monitored by armed guards. The residents are told they are the nuclear shield and saviours of the world. They are told that everyone on the outside is the enemy. One of the most contaminated places on earth, and home to Russia’s largest stockpile of nuclear materials, this place is called CITY 40.

Built after the Second World War to create the Soviet Union’s nuclear weapons program, City 40 is one of Russia’s secret closed cities, collectively known as Z.A.T.O.

In this feature-length documentary, the film crew gets smuggled inside CITY 40 and – behind a psychological façade of normality – they encounter a single mother and a handful of other brave residents who risk their lives to warn us of the human and environmental catastrophe that threatens the region.

Directed by: Samira Goetschel
Country: USA
Runtime: 75′
https://www.facebook.com/CITY40documentary