about the film

It’s 1959 in Baltimore, Maryland. Polish immigrant and aspiring TV writer Pyotr has been trying for years to break into the world of anthology science fiction television. So far, he hasn’t been able to make it out of the mail room of his local station. Feeling the years slipping away from him, he takes the plunge with a so-called “mail-order bride” from Poland, named Stella. He thinks that perhaps she’ll provide the stability and satisfaction in his life that he can’t seem to get from his artistic efforts. Predictably, he soon finds himself trying his hand at television writing again. Worse still, he’s particularly distracted by his upstairs neighbor, a fellow artist, a photographer named Magda. Unwilling to stand by and watch her husband struggle, Stella takes on extra work, even helping Pyotr with writing his scripts. When an opportunity arises at last for Pyotr to get some of his ideas on TV, how will he repay Stella for her kindness?