How To Re-Establish A Vodka Empire
How To Re-Establish A Vodka Empire premiered as a feature documentary film at the BFI London Film Festival 2011 to 5 star reviews, went on to have a global theatrical release and is now available to watch on Netflix.
Like all Optimistic’s projects, it was more than a film - what began as a deep dive into a Jewish family history became an adventure into social entrepreneurship and the setting up of a vodka in an attempt to revive the fortunes of a waning alcohol factory in Ukraine and create local employment.
“A barnstorming tale of vodka and revolution”
This story began in an attic and the discovery of Dan’s Grandmother’s diaries. She had escaped Ukraine in the 1917 Revolution making her way across Europe to Northern Ireland where she converted to Catholicism and, estranged from the Jewish community, was buried in the Falls Road cemetery.
This discovery led to a five year adventure and the plan to make a film called ‘From Bolshevism to Belfast' bringing a journey through past and present to life through DIY animation and historical recreation. Using her manuscript as a treasure map of Ukraine we ended up in a small village suffering from post perestroika economic decline and corruption where residents welcomed in ‘Zorokovich’ (Dan’s grandmother’s surname) and told of a now closed sugar factory and still half open vodka distillery once owned and managed by the family. Things got quickly vodka fuelled and out of hand and we were designing bottles, shipping samples back and forth and launching ‘Zorokovich 1917’ vodka into a UK market.
Early stages of the film were funded by various Jewish foundations and a commission from Channel 4 alongside the ‘Vodka Club’ - an early version of the membership site/crowdfunding strategies we continue to develop to enable our independent work to thrive.
“Unfolds as a travelogue, a memoir, a historical recreation, and a detective story.”
“A tender, extraordinary underdog tale filled with humour, fear and above all, spirit.”
