Kyiv will roll out the red carpet for some of Ukraine’s biggest film stars this week as the glitz and glamor of Hollywood meet the grit and grace of Ukrainian film on the red carpet outside of the Fairmont Hotel on April 20.
Modeled after events like the Oscars and BAFTAs, the premiere Ukrainian Academy Awards will recognize achievement in Ukrainian film in 14 categories, including Best Film, Best Director, Best Acting Performances, and Lifetime Achievement.
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Winners will receive a Golden Dziga statuette to mark their accomplishments. The award is named after Ukrainian director Dziga Vertov, who helmed the classic documentary Man with a Movie Camera.
People’s Artist of Ukraine Larisa Kadochnikova will receive a special award for her contributions to Ukrainian cinema. Alumni of Kyiv’s Lesya Ukrainka Drama Theatre, the esteemed actress went on to star in such hits as 1964’s Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors, 1968’s The Eve of Ivan Kupalo, and 1981’s The Story of a Love.
The awards gala, as well as the Ukrainian Academy of Film, was founded by Ukraine’s leading celebration of film industry – the Odesa International Film Festival (OIFF). The eighth edition is set to take place from July 14-22.
The nominated films range in theme from economic migration to Ukrainian history and folklore, but many share one thing in common – difficulty in financing.
All films had to contend with the devaluation of the Ukrainian currency, but both Best Picture nominee My Grandmother Fanny Kaplan and Best Animated Feature nominee Mykyta Kozhumyanka were forced to stop shooting for long periods in order to secure finances.
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The wait was worth it, and the quality of the finished products will be recognized on April 20.
Whether one is a seasoned Ukrainian film critic or a neophyte looking to add some local film fare to your motion picture repertoire, here are a few flicks to keep an eye on:
My Grandmother Fanny Kaplan
Nominated For: Best Film, Best Director, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actress, Best Art Direction, Best Screenwriter, Best Composer.
With nominations in seven categories, My Grandmother Fanny Kaplan looks to be the primary competition for the biggest awards. The film is a modern retelling of the story of Fanny Kaplan, the Ukrainian woman whose attempt to assassinate Vladimir Lenin played a large role in the lead-up to the Russian Civil War. The stylistic rendering of Ukrainian director Olena Demyanenko follows the life of Kaplan, from her youth to her execution at the hands of the Bolsheviks, and raises several questions along the way. This story isn’t how the Soviets told it; instead, it attempts to tell an old tale through the eyes of a modern Ukrainian. Shot in Kyiv and Odesa, the film was a hit at OIFF last year with Myroslav Slaboshpytsky winning Best Actor.
The Nest of the Turtledove
Nominated for: Best Film, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actor, Best Supporting Actress, Best Art Direction, Best Screenwriter.
Leading the way with nominations in every major category, Taras Tkachenko’s The Nest of the Turtledove is the film best placed to win big. The drama looks at the story of Daryna (Rimma Ziubina), a married villager that returns to Ukraine after working as a maid in Italy for two years. Baring the child of her ‘signore’ (Mauro Cipriani), Daryna must make a life-changing decision: abort the child or risk losing her family. Striking themes familiar to many Ukrainians, including economic migration, the loneliness of living abroad and difficulty in returning afterwards, and even disparity in earnings in the relationship, The Nest of the Turtledove is a poignant look at a lifestyle that will affect many Ukrainians for a generation to come. The film picked up the Golden Duke for Best Ukrainian Feature at the OIFF and looks to add Ukraine’s first Best Film award to its accolades.
Servant of the People
Nominated for: Best Film, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor.
Based on the popular television series of the same name, Servant of the People is a political satire about what would happen if a ‘man of the people’ was elected president. Vladimir Zelensky reprises his role as teacher-turned-president for the feature, which follows his attempts to get past obfuscating oligarchs and a meddlesome parliament to adopt reforms and anti-corruption laws in order to secure a 15 billion euro IMF loan. Sound familiar? The show bases much of its fictional scenarios on real life events and has even been known to predict future events in Ukrainian politics (like the downfall of the Prime Minister). The TV show’s popularity has led to its pickup by Netflix, while American Fox Studios has acquired the rights to the series for an American adaptation. While Ukrainians continue to dream of a president as charismatic as Zelensky, Ukraine’s fictional president can legitimately dream of a Best Actor statuette.
Now I Will Love You
Nominated for: Best Film, Best Art Direction, Best Screenwriter.
Rounding out the Best Picture nominees is Roman Shirman’s infectious romantic comedy Now I Will Love You. Shot here in the Ukrainian capital and set in 1990s Kyiv, the film follows the tale of Michel (Bohdan Benyuk), a successful restaurant owner that is dumped by his beautiful wife on Christmas Eve, and Oksana (Krystyna Kiseliova), a girl with her own romantic baggage. Set during the holiday season and looking at love from different perspectives will surely remind viewers of another modern holiday classic – Love Actually. Yet it’s the sense of hope for the future that truly marks this work as a representation of the modern Ukrainian outlook on life.
Ukrainian Sheriffs
Nominated for: Best Documentary.
Roman Bondarchuk’s Ukrainian Sheriffs is the frontrunner in the Best Documentary category after winning recognition at many national and international film festivals, including its selection to represent Ukraine for the Best Foreign Language Oscar in the U.S. The film looks at Ukrainian village life by following Viktor Kryvoborodko and Volodya Rudkovsky as they try to keep the peace in a town without police. The film looks at plenty of issues facing Ukraine today – from public intoxication to domestic abuse to the seizure of Crimea. The tragicomic documentary shows Ukrainians building their own, new model of community – a microcosm of the society at large.
Blood Sausage
Nominated for: Best Short Film, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actor, Best Supporting Actress, Best Cinematographer, Best Screenwriter.
Nominated in six categories, Blood Sausage is surely the favorite to walk away with the Best Short Film Golden Dziga. Arkadiy Nepytaliuk’s film is a stylish and clever look at traditional cultural values and intercultural communication. The story focuses on the traditional rural family of Andriy (Zachary Nowicki) and his parents. His parents prepare the traditional Ukrainian dish of blood sausage – made from pig – for his fiancé Masha, unbeknownst that she is Jewish. The picture already won Best Film at the 2016 Molodist International Film Festival.
Mykyta Kozhumyanka (The Dragon Spell)
Nominated for: Best Animated Film.
Mykyta Kozhumiaka (The Dragon Spell) is Ukraine’s first-ever 3D animated feature. Produced by Panama Grand Prix Animation, the movie is based on the eponymous Slavic folklore hero (Nicky the Tanner in English). The tale follows a young boy on a great adventure to save two worlds – the human world and a magical world haunted by the curse of a dragon ghost. In a typical hero’s quest, and with the help of his sidekick friends, Mykyta learns the true meaning of what it takes to become a hero. The lusciously animated film is accompanied by the vocals of Zlata Ohnyevich, who finished third at Eurovision 2013 with her song Gravity. Released in January, the film has grossed nearly $200,000 and there are plans for two more sequels.
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