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The Plasticians

Screenwriter:

Hila Elena Royzenman

Producer:

Eitan Mansuri

,

Spiro Films

Language:

Hebrew

Format:

LOGLINE

An illegal plastic surgery clinic, binds the fate of a mother and daughter, who are dragged into running the business from their crumbling living room. As they rise as successful business-women, their harsh reality creeps back in, facing them with the realisation that their empowerment is a mere façade.

SYNOPSIS

An ambitious secretary, an immigrant from the USSR, wants to become a successful life coach. Unfortunately, she can't get out from under the burden of the symbiotic relationship with her mother, a surgeon from Moscow who has become a taxi driver since immigrating to Israel.
In order to finally leave the house and jumpstart her career, she has to find a way for her mom to function without her. She decides to set up a makeshift surgical clinic at home, so her mother can regain the dignity and sense of purpose she lost.
While she waits for the medical license to be approved, the underground clinic begins to grow. The daughter is tempted to give up on her own dreams and live forever alongside this happier and stronger version of her mother, the mother she always wanted. The two form a surprising camaraderie through their complicity in crime, and drag each other deeper into the underworld.

WRITER'S STATEMENT

I was born in St. Petersburg and grew up in an immigrant home in Israel, alongside two educated parents who managed to always take care of the family's financial security, but never found professional fulfilment. I am a daily witness to the dissonance between the successful professionals my parents once were, and the life of survival and compromise brought forth by immigration.
The trauma of immigration naturally passed onto the next generation. The parent-child relationship was turned on its head, and the children often functioned as the responsible adults in the family. As someone who grew up this way, I have always had an impossible dream: to restore my parent’s dignity and see them strong and full of confidence.
However, my parents and their friends chose to embrace life and live it to the fullest. They write plays for birthdays, record songs for each other, dance, drink and soothe their pain with a passion for life and love, trying above all else to forget the instability and uncertainty of life.
The massive addiction to plastic surgery is in fact an attempt at controlling the uncontrollable, a human desire to look good, or simply be seen. In the unique clinic which our series creates, both the immigrant staff and their clients, are driven by the same human nature to survive.
Plastic surgery has become even more popular and accessible in recent years. Still, it is a medical procedure, surgery, positioning the patients seeking treatment as 'ill,' not good-looking or young enough; consequently, the notion of 'healing' through a plastic surgery is very limited. In many cases, dealing with eternal appearance is caused by psychological problems that are neglected and even exacerbated. In this series, I hope to present the other side of the beauty industry's enticing brochures, and focusing on the mental motivations for seeking an external solution.

ABOUT THE WRITER

PRODUCER'S STATEMENT

In 1990, the dissolution of the Soviet Union sparked a significant wave of Russian immigration worldwide. Among these migrations, the influx of Jewish Russians to Israel stands as the nation's largest ever witnessed, with one million individuals making the journey. While many managed to integrate successfully, others faced challenges. "The Plasticians" delves into the narratives of those who struggled to integrate fully into society but nonetheless, never gave up on their joy of life, their culture and definitely not on their dreams. This series raises relevant, global questions about immigration, belonging, and the coexistence of cultures within a nation. It offers a fresh perspective on Russian immigrants who abandoned their previous lives, professions, and sometimes families in pursuit of a new home. Hila Royzenman introduced the project at the Series Mania writer's campus 2022, showcasing her promise as a young director with a distinct voice and deep understanding of these characters' worlds. The series is multilingual, featuring dialogue in Hebrew, Russian, and English, indicating its potential to transcend borders.

PRODUCER PROFILE

PRODUCTION CONTACT DETAILS

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