The 2015 Sundance Film festival, a famous bastion of independent cinema that takes place annually in Utah, U.S., has announced its winners on Jan. 31. Several of them were Ukrainian-made or featured Ukraine.
World Cinema Documentary Grand Jury Prize, one of the festival’s main awards, went to “Russian Woodpecker” (2014), a documentary about the Chernobyl
disaster. It was co-produced by Ukraine, the United States and Great Britain, and directed by American Chad Gracia.
The movie tells a story of Ukrainian artist Fedor Aleksandrovich, who has a theory that
the Chernobyl disaster was an inside job of the Soviet authorities, for which Ukraine still pays the price. The movie echoes with Russia’s current aggression against Ukraine.
“Many thousands of
Ukrainians and Ukrainian artists aren’t as lucky to be here. I don’t
think we can stop Russia with bombs, but with a little bit of art and truth maybe
we can make some progress,” said Gracia, the director, at the award ceremony.
“I would like to concentrate the attention for many
thousands, the best Ukrainian people who were killed in the past year. A lot of
them artists. I hope this film in some way will change the situation and help
Ukraine. Thank you so much from all Ukrainians. Long live Ukraine,” he added.
“Russian Woodpecker” was partly shot in Ukraine, and had at least two Ukrainians on staff – a cameraman and an artist travelling to Chernobyl, who was featured in the film. Now that the war rages in Ukraine, Gracia fears for the safety of his former Ukrainian employees.
Meanwhile, and in turn, the subjects
fear for all of ours.
“I
think the time for me to be personally afraid is past,” Ukrainian
cinematographer Artiom
Ryzhykov said a day before, on Jan. 30, at the Q&A evening, according to the
Sundance Film Festival official website. “Now is
the time for me to be afraid for my country. And afraid for the whole world.
Because there’s a terrorist in power in Russia that might destroy all of us.”
The artist and the leading
actor of the movie, Fedor Alexandrovich, addressed the audience with
a call to save Ukraine: “Save the Ukraine now. Tomorrow will be
too late. Now kremlin attacks Ukraine. Next will be Europe. Next will be World
War. Save Ukraine please.”
Besides “The Russian Woodpecker” the Grand Jury Prizes of the 2015 Sundance went also to “Me and
Earl and the Dying Girl” (U.S. Dramatic), “The Wolfpack” (U.S. Documentary) and
“Slow West” (World Dramatic, UK/New Zealand).
Ukrainian director Myroslav Slaboshpytsky, the creator of the
controversial film “The Tribe” about deaf
teenagers, won a Global Filmmaking Award from the Sundance Institute for shooting
his next feature film “Luxembourg”.
Slaboshpytsky’s
new movie will tell the story of a policeman, who
confronts professional and personal challenges while working in the exclusion
zone in present-day Chernobyl.
Myroslav Slaboshpytskiy’s debut feature The
Tribe is one of the most
acclaimed films of 2014, premiering at the 2014 Semaine de la Critique in
Cannes and going on to win over 30 awards, including Best First Feature at BFI
London, the Special Jury Prize at AFI Fest in LA, and most recently, the
European Discovery 2014 by the European Film Academy. His previous short films
include “The
Incident”, “Diagnosis”, “Deafness” and “Nuclear Waste”.
Besides Ukrainian director, the support of one of the most
influential festivals of independent cinema and 10 thousand dollars received
also representatives of Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Poland and Germany, according to the Sundance Film Festival
official website.
“The Face of
Ukraine: Casting Oksana Baiul“, shot by Australian director Kitty Green, won
at 2015 Sundance Film Festival a Short Film Jury Award (Non-Fiction). The film
tells a story of little girls in bright pink dresses from across a divided,
war-torn Ukraine, who are auditioning for the role of
a former idol: Oksana Baiul. In 1994 a 16-year-old figure skater Baiul, won the first Olympic gold medal in
the history of Ukraine.
Next year’s Sundance Film Festival will be January
21-31, 2016.
