Perception is the key to Sergei Loznitsa’s wordless black and white film-essay The Settlement, which gradually envelops the viewer in the day-to-day activities of a rural mental institution in Russia.

Sergei Loznitsa’s award-winning first feature is a black-and-white study on behavior that plays with the rules of perception. A calm observation of the routine of a group of mentally disturbed patients and their harmonious presence in nature becomes an atmospheric, reflective cinematic experience.