We examine cinematic representations of how the lives of individuals are affected, directly or indirectly, by politics. We read short novels to consider how a different medium addresses the same subject – private individuals affected by public policies and politics. Using textual analysis - letting the artistic text speak for itself – we gain insights into the long reach of politics into citizens’ everyday lives and how it shapes the human condition. This course is comparative in its selective focus on distinctive cinematic traditions of three different parts of the world: Cuba, Russia, and Turkey.