Virtual Friday Night Films at the Wende: Soviet Hippies

The hippie movement that captivated hundreds of thousands of young people in the West had a profound impact on the other side of the Iron Curtain, too. Within the Soviet system, a colorful crowd of artists, musicians, freaks, vagabonds, and other long-haired dropouts created their own system, which connected those who believed in peace, love, and freedom. More than forty years later, a group of eccentric hippies from Estonia take a road trip to Moscow, the hippies still gather annually on the first of June to commemorate the tragic events of 1971, when thousands of the Soviet hippies were arrested by the KGB.

This week’s Cold War Spaces guest, Juliane Fürst, was an associate producer and research advisor for the film.

Watch the film for free on-demand via Vimeo with the password Wendehippies.

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Virtual Film Picks are inspired by the in-person Friday Night Films at the Wende program series. This selection is part of a curated list of weekly movie suggestions that can be watched at home, in conjunction with #WendeOnline.