Ib: Escape from Earth
World of the Film — a fictional universe set in the 1960s, an era of landline telephones, paper newspapers, and the mysterious allure of searching for extraterrestrial life. The small town of Volozh is nestled among dense forests, mountains, rivers, and abandoned quarries, with several residential neighborhoods of private houses, a factory, a police station, a gas station, and a network of roads.
The characters' names, phonetics, and semantics are designed so that a viewer from the Eurasian continent can easily imagine themselves in this world.
TAGLINE
Take Him Home.
LOGLINE
Mid-1960s. A boy named Nick (12) lives in a small provincial town with his mother and sister Nora (16). One day in the forest, Nick rescues an unusual wounded human-like creature and hides it in his home. The hunter who wounded the creature finds a strange metal cylinder in the grass at the spot where his prey mysteriously vanished. The hunter's name is Luke — he is Nick's neighbor, and their windows face each other. At home, Nick manages to bring the creature back to life and names him Ib. Ib explains that they must retrieve the cylinder. Nick and Ib break into Luke's house, find it, and escape. But Luke discovers them and gives chase.
Nick and Ib flee into the forest, where they discover a crashed spaceship. Nick learns that the cylinder is the ship's control key — and that his new friend is an alien. Out of curiosity, Nick presses a button on the control panel, and the ship loses its energy reserve. Now it will explode and destroy Earth within three hours — unless they can find fuel. Incredibly, they discover that ordinary soda cans can be used as fuel — but they need a whole truckload. Meanwhile, Luke finds a newspaper ad offering a reward for the alien's capture. He grabs his rifle and sets off in pursuit. Nick and Ib must find a truck full of empty cans — and fast. The clock is ticking. The stakes are Nick's life, his friend's life, and the fate of the planet.
SYNOPSIS
1960s. Twelve-year-old Nick is left home alone. He rides his bike into the forest and spots a white fawn, chasing after it. A gunshot rings out — the fawn falls. From the woods emerges a strange, human-like creature. With a single gesture, it heals the fawn, and it runs off. A second shot — the creature collapses. Nick hides it in his backpack and carries it home. The hunter emerges — it's Nick's neighbor, the grim and reclusive Luke. He finds no prey, but notices trampled grass and a strange metal cylinder on the ground. Back home, the creature revives. It can move objects with its mind, and soon Nick discovers he can do the same. He names his new friend Ib and gives him a small badge as a keepsake. Ib cannot speak human language, but uses drawings to explain: they must retrieve the cylinder from Luke. The friends break into Luke's house and take the cylinder, but Luke discovers them and gives chase. Fleeing, Nick and Ib find a crashed spaceship in the woods. Nick learns the cylinder is the ship's control key — and that his new friend is an alien. Out of curiosity, Nick presses a button on the panel. The ship loses its energy reserve — in three hours it will explode and destroy Earth unless they find fuel. Remarkably, they learn that ordinary soda cans can serve as fuel — but they need a whole truckload. Meanwhile, Luke finds a newspaper ad offering a reward for the alien's capture. He grabs his rifle and pursues them. Nick and Ib steal a truck full of cans. A race against time begins. Luke chases them in a bulldozer — but a herd of deer blocks his path, led by the same white fawn Ib saved earlier. The friends reach the ship, load the fuel, and start the reactor. At the last second, Ib inserts the cylinder into the control panel and stops the explosion. Luke is defeated, and the police arrest him. The spaceship lifts off and vanishes into the night sky, leaving a blinding blue flash. Nick wakes up at home, hugs his mother Lena — and looks out the window, where the mysterious blue light flickers once again.
