Discoveries from Ukraine World Cinema

"The End" - short animated stories about the end of the world.

Young singer Dmytro creates the rock band "Shadows," but realizes that the other members are only slowing down his path to the big stage. He wants to turn his life around 180°, leaving the dangerous and depressing city of Sumy behind to find a successful music career in the capital.

A summer’s day in a former German military barrack: children forced to flee Ukraine have found refuge here. In their games, they discover military symbols from the past and link them to their experiences.

Brothers of the kobza workshop go to the forest in search of a tree from which you can make a kobza. The picture shows all stages of production of Ukrainian traditional musical instruments. In the process, there is the daughter of one of the brothers, Nastunya, who lost her voice when her mother died, and for a long time she only mumbles her songs. When the brothers finish their work, they go to a concert dedicated to the ATO soldiers. A miracle happens during the concert - Nastun's voice returns.

The film is about street art in the Crimea and about artists who choose radically different paths.

The fragments of observation after the window across the street and an attempt to change the space during self-isolation.

Footage of the everyday life of an ordinary Ukrainian family from the city of Svitlodarsk in the Donetsk region shows a life marred by the Russian occupation, where martial law has become the norm. The picture contrasts children's games, doing homework and having dinner in front of the TV with the panorama of the bombed-out buildings of a ghost town.

A short story about a grandfather and grandson.

An unexpected arrival of his beloved Andrew became a true surprise for the 25-year-old Forest. However, after two happy days, spent together , the boy suddenly disappears. What turned out to be stronger than reality?

A celebration of virtually known and excruciatingly attractive Crimean Tatar culture. It's a portrait of the Ukrainian -Tatar jazz musician Enver Izmaylov, who, after years of displacement and exile, returns to his ancestral land, the Crimea. There, Enver finds a new inspiration to create his amazing music.

About Varvara Kodak, who stopped the war with her superpower, so the Cossacks, not busy with bloodshed, could build a peaceful city. The short film is part of the almanac-series "My Country Ukraine" (Season 2).

Once upon a time there lived Mykola. And he had a neighbor, Ignat the Twat, mean and stupid...

A short multimedia piece produced by Anastasia Taylor-Lind as part of her project to document the uprisings in Ukraine's Maidan Square in early 2014.

Several Ukrainian artists and one filmmaker embark on a journey to seek an answer to once unimaginable question - what is the artist’s role in a war?

The young couple, along with their blogger daughter are going on holiday. Due to the couple's conflict, the daughter gets stuck in the elevator. Will the couple manage to save their daughter without destroying their marriage?

The decision to change his name to a typical Romanian one, was extremely difficult and painful for Mohamed. Will Mohamed do what he so badly strives for and at the same time is afraid of? Will his father perceive this decision seriously?

A middle-aged couple, Nadya and Misha, refugees from Donetsk, buy an old house in the village. Nadya's elderly mother did not want to move to the capital and remained in Makiivka. Nadya and Misha have just sent their only son Andrii to study in Poland, hoping that it would open new perspectives for him in Europe.

The story takes place in one of Kyiv's neighborhoods. The father of the main character, 15-year-old Yanka, is an alcoholic, and she earns a living by returning empty bottles. She is still just a child, and although her life is not easy, she knows how to enjoy it. But one day, everything changes...

Loco wakes up in bed with a stranger. They turn to a therapist for help. Suddenly, after an argument, Loco dreams of his wife. When he wakes up, he finds a terrifying creature in the bathroom.

A Russian priest pays a visit to an art museum in Kharkiv, East Ukraine. For some reason, the museum’s staff is sure that this priest is a spiritual father of Vladimir Putin…

A horror film based on the legendary work of Olga Kobylianska "On Sunday Early I Dug a Potion".

Andriy lives in a God-forsaken village with his paralyzed wife. He takes care of her every day, but at the same time he makes a coffin for her and arranges a wake.

The film is dedicated to the life and achievements of the Ukrainian national volleyball team. Viewers have the opportunity to learn about the details of the national team's performances and preparations for the 2021 European Championship, including information about the coaching staff and players.

What would happen if there existed a magic egg, which could perform one fondest wish?

Video art based on Illia Isupov's own works.

The elite Kyiv Naval Political College operates in a city without access to the sea. The first Soviet aircraft carrier, the Kyiv, became the flagship of the Northern Fleet. The school's students, future political officers of the Soviet navy, go on a long navigation voyage; meanwhile, at their alma mater the Kyiv-Mohyla Academy opens. Focusing on the history of the institution's changing ideological functions, Under the Sign of Anchor explores the complex and sometimes paradoxical connections between war and culture, the Soviet past and the present. The film is based on materials from film archives from the time of the collapse of the USSR and the first years of Ukraine's independence.

The historical documentary film Felix tells the story of a Ukrainian hero who was an aerial reconnaissance man. The project combines authentic accounts of the formation of Ukraine's independence, from 1991 to the present day. The film reveals all the key events that encourage the viewer to reflect on the cost of the people's struggle for independence from the appetites of Muscovy for centuries and continues to defend it to this day.

The main hero of the story was the frog, which was not a usual one, but of the red color. The nature made his fellow green not for nothing. After all, so they are not so noticeable in their habitats to those who want to eat them, because they are difficult to spot in the grass or wetland thickets. But the red frog can be seen from afar. How does he cope with the ever-occurring troubles?

A family celebrates the birthday of their son. After a warm birthday greeting, their usual feast takes place.

This is not a movie about strategic actions or the history of Donetsk airport defense. This is a film about the lives of Ukrainian guys who are ready to give everything for the sake of freedom and homeland.

It begins with a chance encounter between Ro and Ju on a film set. A conventional love film? The characters not only change bodies, identities and desires over seven countries. They struggle with perceptions of themselves and others, fail because of bad scripts, a lack of visas, social expectations or their own demands. The film shows that love is both individual and universal at the same time. It shows diversity in action and not only dispels prejudices about gender relations and sexism in different corners of the world, but also touches on topical issues such as the war in Ukraine. The film is an ode to love and a declaration of love to filmmaking. Film sets, the madness and confusion of film production and the excitement before the premiere are also themes of the film.

This musical is a dazzling journey into the world of showbiz through the eyes of AquaLatex — a bold, ambitious performer dreaming of stardom. This vibrant film blends drama, romance, and musical performances featuring some of Kyiv and Ukraine’s favorite stars. With its comedic twists, emotional depth, and unforgettable soundtrack, this musical promises a truly unique and entertaining experience!

Rescued by a combat medic after a severe injury on the frontline, a Ukrainian soldier undergoes rehabilitation, confronting physical and emotional challenges on his path back to civilian life, driven by a single wish: to return home.

Rusanivka is an island neighborhood inhabited by children, dogs, old people, and fishermen. The film shows the irony of human existence, caught between a playground and a pet cemetery.

About the tragic fate of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army.

A brief story of the life and development of Lviv artist Mykhailo Bezpalkiv, Honored Artist of Ukraine. The hero's life is a manifestation of artistic freedom in difficult times.

After being a volunteer doctor at the frontline during the bloodiest days in revolutionary Kyiv, Tanya continues curing wounded people on Maidan. Meanwhile unannounced war with the Russian Federation breaks out on the eastern and southern Ukraine. She must go to the war zone again.

Grandfather and grandson are playing a chess game. Which of them will turn out to be the genius of the game?

Just as layers of papier-mâché strengthen the fragile form, so working on films and oneself shapes the director. The film is dedicated to the attentive teacher and outstanding puppeteer Oleh Pedan who passed away in 2020.

After the second round of the 2004 presidential elections in Ukraine, millions of people went out on the streets. During this revolution, there was a genuine solidarity between people from different levels of the society, from the cities and the countryside. Although these people were brought up in a Soviet society where every protest against the authorities was a danger to one's life, they were so disappointed by what came after the collapse of the Soviet Union that they went out to the streets, faced the authorities and made the orange revolution possible. The film explores motives for taking part in the Ukrainian revolution, their view of the world, living-condition and hope for the future.

Follows the preparation for the wedding of a young Hutsul couple, including the traditions, costumes and rituals involved.

While Tamara, the 40-year-old woman artist, who is going through an existential crisis, tries to discover whether she has got rabies from a dog, that bit her on the street, the other woman comes to her house - the young mistress of her husband. Insult and frustration throw Tamara to fight her inner demons and her own artistic rabies while her husband is lost between the two worlds of powerful women.

A short film about shooting a student short film.

A music film about the revival of Ukrainian songwriting. Ukrainian artists and poets reflect on the place and prospects of the nation in history.

Documentary portrays life in a residential area suddenly hit by war. From apartments in Mykolaiv, Kyiv, and Kharkiv, we see the traces of fallen bombs after the initial Russian attacks. Narrated from within small apartments, where residents try to gather shards of glass, belongings, and memories while attempting to comprehend the immeasurable tragedy that has befallen them. The film reminds us of what it means to have a home and highlights the strength it takes to rebuild when one's entire world has suddenly been shattered.

The story is not only about Ukrainian museums during a full-scale war, but about the survival of our culture in general. The occupiers are trying to destroy it and steal it, but thanks to museum workers, it is not only being protected, but also multiplied.

Feeling hungry, a young boy Semen and his father went to the kitchen to get some food, but all they found was empty pans and a note from his mother, saying that she couldn't live that way anymore. Due to the everlasting feeling of hunger, Semen’s father embarked on a search of a new mother.

Natalia follows her mother’s wish and returns with her to her home in Luhansk, in the days before the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Two people ring a stranger's doorbell, and you think they want to talk about God, but they actually have a different proposition.

A short form documentary about five ordinary Ukrainians who were taken hostage in occupied Luhansk.

A young woman in a big nice house creates the design of the apartment while a very gloomy delivery man delivers the pizza at night. What do they have in common and how does she affect him...

In the spring of 1994, a series of mysterious events occur in the small town of Stryhiltsi, Luhansk Oblast, Ukraine. While several of the town's children go missing, three teenage boys discover a local Soviet-blocked river, which appears to have the ability to send a diver 30 years into the future. When the boys try it out, they find themselves in the Russian-occupied Luhansk Oblast in the 2020s, where they find a connection between the local kidnapper and the "time machine" river.

The film directed by V. Artemenko is dedicated to the members of the village orchestra of his native village of Melnyky, Chornobai district, Cherkasy region, who died during the war and who died of wounds. When the famous sculptor Anatoliy Khorechko saw film "Village Orchestra", he put aside all his affairs, left the city and for three years lived in the village of Melnyky and built a monument to the deceased orchestra players.

This is a journey into the mind of the director, a young Ukrainian man, who was abroad, when the war in his home country has started.

The theater actress Lola dreamed of two things - to play seductive mistresses and get an award in Cannes. But when she is offered a long-awaited role, she learns that she should play the role not of the main character, but of her mother. This news makes Lola look back and realize that she made a mistake in choosing a career instead of a family. But Lola finds the strength to go further.

War with Russia on the east of Ukraine through the director's lens who stayed for a year in the centre of the conflict zone. He became a paramedic volunteer and continued filming everything what was happening in front of his eyes, making a rare true document of this brutal war that continues to happen in the centre of Europe.

What does the violent heart of revolution feel like? As the anger and hatred glow white hot is there a language its players use to speak to one another? And what becomes of the gun toting authorities when their fiefdom is destroyed, nobody is any longer afraid, and all things are ablaze? Just some of the questions addressed in this visceral documentary from Maidan square in the violent Ukrainian winter of 2013-14.

2020 became the year of uncertainty and fear: pandemic and fight against it, murders and disapperances of children, gender violence and impunity. We feel our own vulnerability, worry for ourselves and our loved ones. We want to guard and protect. We are ready to sacrifice a part of our freedom for an illusion of control.