After You’re Gone (2016) Characters, Setting & Themes Explained

The movie is set in a suburban hometown near a city, a town with about 70,000 inhabitants. The primary locations are a dance school-studio and an apothecary business run by the protagonist. This intimate, close-knit setting provides a grounded backdrop for the story's introspective tone.

• setting
• suburban town
• dance studio
• location

The narrative spans from the 1990s to the present day, beginning with the dancer's spinal injury during his early fame. A 20-year gap follows, leading to his present-day life as he plans his comeback. This timing emphasizes the contrast between a celebrated past and a quieter, more contemplative present.

• 1990s
• present day
• time period
• decades

Alexey Temnikov is a famed ballet dancer once known as a genius of dance who suffered a serious spinal injury in the 1990s, ending his promising career. Now living in his suburban hometown, he runs an apothecary while teaching dance. He is emotionally guarded, introspective, and struggling with both a degenerative condition and the question of what legacy he will leave behind.

• Alexey Temnikov
• ballet dancer
• protagonist
• character

Alexey is dealing with a degenerative spinal condition that will eventually rob him of his ability to walk. This progressive illness adds urgency to his decision to finally choreograph the ballet he has dreamed of, as he confronts both mortality and the finite nature of his physical capabilities.

• degenerative condition
• spinal injury
• health
• mortality

Marina is Alexey's girlfriend, currently pregnant with his child. She remains supportive and hopeful throughout his journey but is unsettled by his hesitance to commit fully. Her presence adds a personal stake to his story and forces him to confront questions of responsibility and the kind of father he wants to be.

• Marina
• girlfriend
• pregnant
• relationship

Chiara is Alexey's 12-year-old daughter who wants to learn to dance. She represents a chance for connection and renewal in his life, pushing him to engage with his paternal role. Her presence forces Alexey to consider a future he had long avoided and to measure what kind of legacy he truly wants to leave behind.

• Chiara
• daughter
• 12 years old
• dancing

Redemption centers on Alexey's quest to leave something lasting beyond his fading career. Confronted with mortality and the question of what will remain after he's gone, his decision to stage a final ballet becomes a vessel for atonement, memory, and the possibility of renewal. It is his attempt to find meaning in the face of physical decline.

• redemption
• legacy
• mortality
• atonement

Dance serves as both vocation and salvation throughout the narrative. Alexey's return to choreographing a ballet set to Prokofiev's music becomes a test of courage, skill, and identity after years away from the spotlight. The process reveals how art can redefine a life and bridge past glory with present longing.

• art
• comeback
• ballet
• Prokofiev
• dance

Family emerges as a central theme through the re-entry of Alexey's pregnant girlfriend Marina and his 12-year-old daughter Chiara, both demanding attention he has long withheld. The tension between career ambition and family responsibility surfaces as he contemplates commitment and fatherhood, measuring what kind of legacy he wants to leave.

• family
• fatherhood
• responsibility
• legacy

The apothecary business represents Alexey's grounded life in his suburban hometown, a stark contrast to his former glory in the ballet world. Running this business while teaching dance shows his transition from elite performer to a more ordinary existence, and grounds his story in everyday reality.

• apothecary
• pharmacy
• business
• suburban life

The ballet Alexey choreographs is set to Prokofiev's music, a choice that connects his work to the classical ballet tradition. Prokofiev's compositions are known for their emotional depth and complexity, reflecting the themes of loss, longing, and redemption that define Alexey's journey.

• Prokofiev
• ballet music
• classical
• choreography

The film has a predominantly melancholic tone due to the protagonist's reflection on a career cut short by injury and his confrontation with a degenerative condition. While the emotional weight is heavy given themes of mortality and physical decline, the intensity remains medium as the conflict is largely internal and contemplative rather than driven by high-stakes external drama.

• melancholic
• tone
• emotional
• mood