Despite the progress made in the wake of the success of films such as “Waltz with Bashir” and “Persepolis,” the animated documentary is still a marginalized genre, regarded with a certain suspicion or, even worse, as an oxymoron. To the extent that the general public continues to associate documentary with the objective recording of raw reality, nonfictional animation still suffers from its lack of an indexical link to the world. One area which it is perfectly equipped for, however, is the rendering of the immaterial dimension of the real, be it emotions, memories, rumours or legends. All of these make up the story narrated by Zoe Aiano’s and Anna Benner’s short film. The mysterious figure of the Czech woman who, following her infection with syphilis after a rape, spread her disease among the German occupiers, is recomposed from imprecise testimonies passed down from one generation to another. The only concrete thing is a memorial plaque in the city of Třeboň which certifies her tragic end, under the bullets of the firing squad. The essentialized animation, composed of broken lines and ever-changing tones, and the abstract space – the background is reduced to a single shade resembling old paper - both work to endow the desperate acts caused by wars past and present with sad poetical undertones. (Liri Alienor Chapelan)