5 Ukrainian Films to be Presented at Ukraine on Film Festival in Belgium

The Galeries cinema in Brussels will host the Ukraine on Film festival from May 9 to 12 - an annual celebration of Ukrainian culture showcasing films, concerts, and meetings with internationally renowned creatives. This year, the festival will present five of Ukraine's most impactful films, as announced by the organizers on their website.

Among the films to be featured are both contemporary Ukrainian works and restored classics of Ukrainian cinema. The lineup for Ukraine on Film includes:

• "20 Days in Mariupol" - a documentary film that received this year's Oscar award. Created by the Associated Press team, it depicts the last international journalists in Mariupol during the Russian invasion and brutal occupation of the city.
• "Peaceful People" - a documentary by Ukrainian director Oksana Karpovych, showcasing the consequences of Russian aggression in Ukraine through shocking phone conversations between Russian soldiers and their relatives, intercepted by Ukrainian intelligence.
• "We Shall Not Fade" - a film by Ukrainian director Alisa Kovalenko, already recognized at the Berlinale. It tells the story of teenagers in the frontline zone in Donbas embarking on a journey to the Himalayas to discover a world beyond war.
• "La Palissade" - a debut film by Ukrainian director Philip Sotnychenko, set in Ukraine in 1996. The film follows two old friends, a police detective and a court psychiatrist, investigating a colleague's murder five months before the moratorium on the death penalty.
• "Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors" - a classic film by the iconic Ukrainian director of Armenian descent, Sergei Parajanov. Set in the Hutsul region of Western Ukraine, it tells the tale of the forbidden love between Marichka and Ivan from feuding families. This screening marks the 100th anniversary of the director's birth, who created one of the key films in Ukrainian cinema.

The Ukraine on Film festival was launched in 2016 in Brussels, with its recent screenings held during the BRIDGES. East of West Film Days in February 2023. The event is organized by Art House Traffic, the Ukrainian Society in Belgium, and the Ukrainian Institute.

Reminder: The Gaze reported that the film "20 Days in Mariupol" won the Oscar for Best Documentary this year.