Documentary backdrop image for Malanka (2019)

Documentary backdrop image for Malanka (2019)

201914 minPGdocumentary

Malanka

201914 minPGdocumentary

Gigi celebrates Malanka, a pagan festival in the Ukrainian hills near the Romanian border, where bears are considered heroes.

Genres

Directors

Pascal Messaoudi,

Paul-Louis Léger

Synopsis

Gigi celebrates Malanka, a pagan festival in the Ukrainian hills near the Romanian border, where bears are considered heroes.

People

Pascal Messaoudidirector

Paul-Louis Légerdirector

Pascal Messaoudiwriter

Paul-Louis Légerwriter

Synopsis

Somewhere in the Ukrainian hills, near the Romanian border, Gigi celebrates Malanka, a pagan festival whose bears are heroes.

Comments

What are people saying?

Play More Like This

Wild Balkans (2009)

Wild Balkans

2009•53m•★6.5TMDB

Lake Skadar is home to 270 bird species, while Montenegro's Tara National Park features a gorge that is 1,300 meters deep.

Kings of the 'most discriminated against group in Europe' (2007)

Kings of the 'most discriminated against group in Europe'

Meet the rival Gypsy Kings in Romania, Florin Cioba and Iulian Radulescu, in a fierce dispute.

Kings of the 'most discriminated against group in Europe'

Living with bears: A Romanian town and its wild neighbors (2026)

Living with bears: A Romanian town and its wild neighbors

Băile Tușnad, a tourist town in the Carpathian Mountains, has developed strategies to coexist with the bears that once threatened its community.

Living with bears: A Romanian town and its wild neighbors

Where wolves, bears and bison roam (2023)

Where wolves, bears and bison roam

In Maramureș, Romania, traditional artisan skills thrive alongside wolves, bears, and bison, with local customs and historic wooden churches showcasing the region's rich heritage.

Where wolves, bears and bison roam

Madagascan Christians Dig Up The Dead (2016)

Madagascan Christians Dig Up The Dead

Madagascan Christians celebrate the Famadiha festival, where exhumed corpses are joyfully paraded, reflecting their unique beliefs about life, death, and ancestral connection.

Madagascan Christians Dig Up The Dead

The Makishi Masquerade I Slice (2021)

The Makishi Masquerade I Slice

The Makishi Masquerade in Zambia celebrates the initiation of boys into manhood, but rising costs threaten the survival of this 500-year-old tradition.

The Makishi Masquerade I Slice

The Baaka Pygmies (2022)

The Baaka Pygmies

The Baaka Pygmies live in the African rainforest, showcasing their unique culture and songs.

The Baaka Pygmies

Rare Uncensored Footage of the Secret Rituals of Brazil's Mehinaku Tribe (2026)

Rare Uncensored Footage of the Secret Rituals of Brazil's Mehinaku Tribe

In Central Brazil's Xingu National Park, the Mehinaku tribe's annual Piki festival highlights their intricate rituals, gender roles, and spiritual traditions essential for community survival.

Rare Uncensored Footage of the Secret Rituals of Brazil's Mehinaku Tribe

Lands of Legends: Where Traditions Still Shape Everyday Life (2026)

Lands of Legends: Where Traditions Still Shape Everyday Life

In Madagascar, sacred crocodiles, white yaks in Nepal, and warrior horses in Indonesia exemplify the enduring connections between humans and nature across diverse cultures.

Lands of Legends: Where Traditions Still Shape Everyday Life

Saving the Bears - Greece (2007)

Saving the Bears - Greece

Yiannnis Boutaris, a Greek tycoon, establishes a bear sanctuary to protect the dwindling bear population and promote conservation education among children.

Saving the Bears - Greece

Explore Malanka

People FAQ Stream

Browse more like this

Wild Balkans (2009)

Wild Balkans

2009•53m•★6.5TMDB

Lake Skadar is home to 270 bird species, while Montenegro's Tara National Park features a gorge that is 1,300 meters deep.

No digital watch option in your country

Lands of Legends: Where Traditions Still Shape Everyday Life (2026)

Lands of Legends: Where Traditions Still Shape Everyday Life

In Madagascar, sacred crocodiles, white yaks in Nepal, and warrior horses in Indonesia exemplify the enduring connections between humans and nature across diverse cultures.

Lands of Legends: Where Traditions Still Shape Everyday Life

No digital watch option in your country

The Gorals - Highlanders of Carpathia (2018)

The Gorals - Highlanders of Carpathia

2018•49m•★8.7TMDB

Over 100 Gorals in the Carpathian Mountains maintain their cultural heritage through traditional woodwork, textiles, and folk music despite modern challenges.

The Gorals - Highlanders of Carpathia

Krasna Malanka (2013)

Krasna Malanka

2013•52m•★6.0TMDB

In the village of Krasna, Ukraine, the Malanka holiday showcases vibrant carnival activities and cultural traditions that unite the community each year.

Gora (2017)

Gora

2017•1h18m•★6.0TMDB

Seventy-eight minutes capture the daily lives of the Gorani people in Kosovo, focusing on their agricultural practices and cultural traditions.

Pagans (2017)

Pagans

2017•52m•★6.0TMDB

At the vibrant Our-Lady-of-the-Hens festival, Fonzino prepares a ritual altar while Biagio leads the femminielli in performances of dance and song.

Gratian: The Real life Romanian Werewolf (1999)

Gratian: The Real life Romanian Werewolf

1999•45m•★6.0TMDB

One villager in Izbuc, Romania, is believed to be a werewolf due to a midwife's invocation during his birth that influenced his entire life.

Gratian: The Real life Romanian Werewolf

Browse more by Pascal Messaoudi

View all films →

Carrousel (2025)

Carrousel

2025

Is this your film?

If you made this film or hold the rights to it, we'd like to talk. We can license it and pay you a share of what it earns.

License it with us →