The Docudays UA film festival was unfortunate to have been scheduled during the nationwide lockdown in 2020 and had to move online. This year, it prepared to run offline but again had to change plans after the Kyiv authorities introduced a strict lockdown starting March 20.
Just like a year ago, the festival, set for March 26 – April 4, will be held online.
The 18th Docudays UA International Human Rights Documentary Film Festival will focus on health as a human right, spotlighting the pandemic, mental health and healthcare under the “Full Recovery” theme.
“We are interested in exploring and discussing how the world and our country have changed since last year,” Docudays writes on its website. “We’ve gotten used to masks, self-isolation has become a path to self-knowledge, everyone has mastered video conferencing for work meetings and even informal parties.”
The festival will play over 80 films in their original language with English and Ukrainian subtitles. The tickets cost Hr 30-90 ($1-3) per picture with some available for free. Most of the films will become available at 10 a.m. on March 27 at the festival’s online cinema Docuspace.
The Docudays UA is one of Kyiv’s most influential film festivals that addresses human rights issues through screenings, public discussions and art events like exhibitions. This time, it was financed by the Embassy of Sweden in Ukraine, the Ukrainian Cultural Foundation and the State Film Agency of Ukraine.
The program of the 18th edition features films from all around the world listed in the competition and non-competition programs and special themed sections.
Among the pictures looking into the pandemic and its impact on humanity is “57 days” directed by Mario Lumbreras and Laura Brasero. The picture follows Julio Lumbreras, one of the first patients to enter an intensive care unit in Spain with the coronavirus, portraying the 57 days he spends fighting it.
Italian directors Davide Rapp and Ippolito Pestellini Laparelli make a strong case for food delivery riders as essential workers in their short video essay “Riders Not Heroes” that investigates the dangerous conditions of food delivery riders in Milan. During the pandemic, the food delivery riders found themselves at the intersection of platform capitalism, gig labor, the refugee crises and COVID-19.
The festival is also a rare chance to watch Ukrainian-made films online, as there are few streaming services in Ukraine.
Among those on the list is “Roses. Film-Cabaret” directed by Irena Stetsenko. A “tragicomic musical documentary,” it closely follows seven female artists of the Ukrainian Dakh Daughters band exploring the heights of the cabaret genre in the modern world. Living through the Maidan Revolution of 2014, art became a way for the Dakh Daughters to process and reflect on those events and face the harsh reality of Ukraine’s sociopolitical sphere.
“Salt from Bonneville” directed by Simon Mozgovyi is the story about Nazar and Max, two guys from Ukraine, an old Soviet bike and the ambitious goal they set to beat the world speed record at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, USA. The two Ukrainians spend all their time assembling their bike in a small garage on the outskirts of Kyiv and traveling to accomplish their dream of becoming the next speed racing champions.
One of the most-awaited foreign entries is “Krzysztof Keslowski: A Documentary Biography” curated by Polish director Agnieszka Holland that takes the audience through the life of a well-known Polish documentary filmmaker Keslowski and his life philosophy.
Another one, “There Will Be No More Night” by Eleanor Weber, only uses videos of the American and French armed forces in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria to portray the moral and social problems of the war.
Docudays UA. March 26 – April 4. Check the full program and buy tickets at the website. Watch films at the festival’s online cinema.
