The National Competition programme of the 13th Odesa International Film Festival will be held as part of the Warsaw International Film Festival in October, organisers said.
The jury will select the winners in two categories: Best Feature Film and Best Short Film.
A total of 11 feature films are to compete for awards.
The movies
Almost all of them reflect the traumas that the Ukrainian people have been experiencing since the start of the Russian-Ukrainian war in 2014.
Valentyn Vasyanovych’s Reflection, for instance, is the story of an Ukrainian surgeon who returns to his comfortable apartment after a time held captive by the Russian military forces. Exposed while there to scenes of humiliation and violence, he is trying to find a purpose in life and rebuild his family relationships.
One Day In Ukraine, a Ukrainian-Polish co-production by Volodymyr Tykhyy, is set in Ukraine on March 14, 2022, Day 2,944 of the Russian-Ukrainian war.
Meanwhile, Butterfly Vision by Maxim Nakonechny is a dark story about a woman soldier returning home having been kept prisoner for two months and discovering she is pregnant after being raped by her warden.
Odesa Int'l Film Festival comes to Warsaw
Anna Machukh, General Director of the Odesa International Film Festival, welcomed the opportunity to showcase the latest Ukrainian films in Warsaw.
She said on social media: “We are grateful to our Polish colleagues for the great support of Ukraine.”
Machukh added: “Unfortunately, under the conditions of war, it is impossible to hold the Odesa International Film Festival in the traditional format. However, I am sure that new Ukrainian cinema should be seen. And I am glad that, in particular, it will be seen by the Polish audience, and Ukrainians who are forced to be abroad now.”
Stefan Laudyn, the director of the Warsaw International Film Festival, noted in his statement for the media that the Polish Film Academy was active in the international campaign for the release of Ukrainian director Oleg Sentsov, after he was kidnapped and sentenced in Russia to twenty years’ imprisonment.
“Last year, the Warsaw International Film Festival was honoured by the presence of Oleg Sentsov, who presented his film Rhino,” Laudyn stated.
He added: “Now in 2022, when Russia started the war in Ukraine and the Odesa Film Festival cannot happen, we quickly agreed that its Ukrainian Competition would take place in Warsaw. Where else?”
The Warsaw International Film Festival is scheduled for October 14-23.
(mk/pm)