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CBC
25-04-2025
- Entertainment
- CBC
Ukraine war documentary 2000 Meters to Andriivka is a horrifying triumph
Director Mstyslav Chernov's follow to 20 Days in Mariupol is a harrowing account of Russia-Ukraine war "There is, of course, an element of beauty in this. And I must say that this is surely, from ancient times, one of the most enduring appeals of battle," explains author, philosopher and soldier J. Glenn Gray in the final episode of BBC's classic Second World War documentary, The World at War. He's speaking about the Allied bombardment of southern France, a terrific spectacle of violence that, he says, made him believe the coast would literally detach itself, and simply fall off into the ocean. A scene so terrible and awesome, he says, "everybody — including, of course, myself — was drawn into it. So that we forgot all about ourselves." So beautiful they'd forgotten that in a few hours, they'd have to head into it. Why begin a review of Ukrainian war documentary 2000 Meters to Andriivka — crafted by Mstyslav Chernov, the director of Oscar-winning 20 Days in Mariupol — with the description of a battle that occurred almost a century earlier? Well for one, it's continuing a trend that has all but dominated cinematic history both between and before those two wars. From the first best picture winner at the Academy Awards (Wings in 1927), to the current highest grossing movie of all time (Avatar), we can't seem to get enough military action in our entertainment, despite its real-life horror. But more importantly, we can't seem to stop debating why we want to see war recreated on film, how much of it to include — and how filmmakers should go about depicting it. For example: Is Jojo Rabbit poking fun at the Nazis by dismantling their evil, or disrespecting their victims? Did Apocalypse Now actually function as an anti-war film, or turn Ride of the Valkyries into a glorifying anthem of American military might? Is Top Gun Pentagon propaganda? Perhaps most recently, those debates sprung up around Alex Garland's Iraq-war feature Warfare, a real-time battle recreation intentionally devoid of character growth, plot or examination that I dubbed, in short, unethical. So in going to bat for 2000 Meters to Andriivka, at least a bit of explanation is necessary. And the documentary, receiving its Canadian premiere at Hot Docs on April 27 ahead of a fall theatrical release, does operate in ways that seem very similar to Warfare. As with 20 Days in Mariupol, which documented the early days of Russia's invasion, Chernov embeds himself in the thick of battle. Though here, his camera will occasionally find itself affixed to the helmets of actual soldiers, battling for inches on a two kilometre stretch of forest between them and a small Ukrainian village. That village — Andriivka — is occupied by Russian forces at the film's opening. With a tiny population of about 100, it doesn't necessarily hold great cultural significance like, for example, the contested urban centres of Bakhmut and Pokrovsk. But, as Chernov explains in the monotone he's seemingly inherited from the violence he's somehow managed to live through, capturing it would disrupt Russian supply lines. Figuring out a way to tag along, Chernov documents the enormous human cost associated with accomplishing that task. The film opens with a horrifically unvarnished firefight, a nightmare recording of whizzing bullets, shattered legs and death. It continues on, never shying away from the violence, holding our heads toward the dying young men in a way that borders on the obscene. Surely, this can't be allowed. Surely, there must be some rule against showing 24-year-old Gagarin in the centre of the frame, pumping bullets off into the distance, only to slump suddenly to his side as a bullet enters his body. Surely, there has to be a law against showing this man's death. But no, it would seem, there is not. We witness death many times, soldiers killed on both sides — including a Russian soldier exiting a foxhole who's shot until he's motionless, then shot again as he lies on the ground. Why isn't this unethical; voyeurism meant to satisfy what Gray calls war's main draw: "this attraction of the outlandish, the strange"? Documenting a continuing nightmare In some ways it is. The combined force of morose interviews with soldiers, paired with either voice-over commentary on their later deaths, video of their funerals or their actual on-screen endings would border on maudlin if they weren't so harrowing. It's a combination transparently effective enough to lead to mass protest against Russians at War, the 2024 documentary that made a similar point from the perspective of the aggressors — and the Russian soldiers featured in that film appeared almost as ambivalent and disenchanted with the war as some of Chernov's subjects do here. But there is a grim strategy to it, one Chernov brings up toward the end of the movie when talking about the long slog of the war, which has been going on for more than two years. "This war is a nightmare none of us can wake up from," he says, lamenting that the longer the nightmare goes on, the less anyone abroad will care about it. It's a devastatingly accurate assessment, even as new offensives, counter-offensives and errant social media posts bring the war back into headlines. And it's a point 2000 Meters to Andriivka makes with the spectacle of war it uses as a vehicle, even while railing against its necessity. Because importantly, this movie does not, like Warfare, posture toward impartiality. Garland argued that his Warfare served a purpose by taking the artistic manipulations out of war movies and instead giving audiences the "unfiltered" experience of war. But in actuality, Chernov knows that even these real, actual deaths caught on camera cannot hope to recreate the horror of actually being in a war, your own body at real and constant risk instead of the ones on screen. Director constantly questioning the point of the war To put context to the gore, Chernov is constantly there, asking what is this war for? What's the point? Some soldiers answer in vaguely heroic terms, saying that, eventually, Ukraine will triumph. Others — including a captured Russian soldier — simply say they have no idea why they put their lives at jeopardy every day. Later there is a more macabre observation. "During the liberation of the Kharkiv region, I saw the places of my childhood — you know, where I visited my grandmother. But they're all gone. You are walking on either ruins or graves," says a voice speaking in Ukrainian. Image | Russia Ukraine War Caption: An assault unit commander from the 3rd Assault Brigade who goes by the call sign 'Fedia' raises the Ukrainian flag as a symbol of liberation of the frontline village of Andriivka in Ukraine on Sept. 16, 2023. Photographer Alex Babenko was the co-producer and a cinematographer for 2000 Meters to Andriivka. (Alex Babenko/The Associated Pres) Open Image in New Tab The assessment is further reinforced when they reach Andriivka, which is little more than abandoned rubble. Control of the town has been traded between Russia and Ukraine numerous times already, and it's likely to happen numerous times more rather than ever being rebuilt. "What they are liberating — it appears as though they are liberating your home. But it's just ruins and graves," the voice continues. Instead, the importance is in what it means: a liberated city can be championed by civilians back home, avoiding the trauma of hearing another city fall. It's little comfort for the soldiers in the foxhole though. They are dying, in part, for appearances. Chernov is capturing the strangeness and immensity of their deaths for them, too, so the world knows they're still fighting. And, as 2000 Meters to Andriivka so accurately captures, there is nothing beautiful about death.
Yahoo
30-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Mstyslav Chernov's film '2,000 Meters to Andriivka' wins award at documentary film festival in Denmark
Ukrainian director and journalist Mstyslav Chernov's documentary 2,000 Meters to Andriivka received the F:ACT Award at Denmark's CPH:DOX documentary film festival, organizers announced on March 29. The jury praised the film as a powerful portrayal of war and a strong reflection on loss and resilience. The documentary follows Ukraine's 2023 counteroffensive, as Chernov embeds with a platoon from the 3rd Separate Assault Brigade. Their mission was to liberate Andriivka, a strategically important village in Donetsk Oblast. Surrounded by mines, the village is accessible only through a narrow stretch of forest, making the battle particularly grueling. "Ultimately we give the F:ACT award to 2,000 Meters to Andriivka not just because it's a conflict on our doorstep, but because it's a masterpiece in filmmaking: a haunting, multi-layered portrayal of war comparable to All Quiet on the Western Front,' the jury stated. 'But this is not the First World War, it's today. An artist amid bloodshed brings the reality home, and makes an anti-war film that forces us to reflect on the dignity of each human life lost." Chernov, an acclaimed war correspondent and documentary filmmaker, worked on the project with Associated Press photographer Oleksandr Babienko. The film was produced by Michelle Misner and Rainey Aronson-Rath, both of whom won an Oscar for "20 Days in Mariupol." His previous film, 20 Days in Mariupol, won the Oscar for Best Documentary at the 96th Academy Awards last March. The film captures the Russian siege of Mariupol in the early weeks of the full-scale invasion, offering a firsthand account from Chernov and his team. It is the first Ukrainian-directed film to ever receive an Oscar. Read also: Kharkiv's Faktor Druk printing house fully restored after Russian missile attack We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Yahoo
29-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Deming Chen's ‘Always' Wins Main Prize at CPH:DOX as Mstyslav Chernov Nabs F:ACT Award for ‘2000 Meters to Andriivka'
On Friday, the top DOX award at Copenhagen documentary festival CPH:DOX went to 'Always,' the first feature by Chinese director Deming Chen. The film follows eight-year-old Youbin, raised by his father and grandparents in a remote mountain village in Hunan province, who discovers poetry as a means of making sense of his solitude and the world around him. Shot in stunning black and white, the film blends lyrical beauty with raw realism, following Youbin's coming-of-age as he grapples with life, loss, and the passage of time. More from Variety Kansas City Chiefs Docuseries Set at ESPN and Disney+ From 'The Last Dance' Producers 'Stranger Things' Play 'The First Shadow' Getting Netflix Behind-the-Scenes Doc as Broadway Previews Begin How to Navigate the Political Documentary Market: 'Audiences Want to Watch Something That Engages With the World Around Us' Taking to the stage, a very emotional Chen thanked his entire team. Producer Hansen Lin said: 'Through the journey of making this film, we hope to share this happiness and achievement with everyone who still believes in their dreams. If you believe in it, you will make it – even if life may sometimes disappoint you. We always hold onto the hope that peace and support will guide us all toward a brighter future.' The jury, composed of Danish director Max Kestner ('Life and Other Problems'), producer Rikke Tambo Andersen, New York Times critic Nicolas Rapold, Italian director and researcher Adele Tulli, and Raul Niño Zambrano, head of film programs at Sheffield DocFest, lauded the film, saying: 'There's a huge difference between nothing and small things. But life is in fact made up of many, often unnoticed, small things. We need the sensibilities of artists to show us the greatness of the little things. This exquisitely shot chronicle of a rural farming family is alive with compassion and poetry.' Danish photographer-turned-director Monica Strømdahl received a Special Mention for her directorial debut 'Flophouse America,' which follows 12-year-old Mikal, growing up with his alcoholic parents in a cheap hotel – one of many flophouses that tens of thousands of Americans living on society's margins call home. Filmed with simplicity and compassion, the doc offers a stark portrait of America's deepening economic and housing crisis. Both DOX winners were world premieres, among a record-breaking 94 – the highest number in the festival's history. Sponsored by Danish daily newspaper Politiken, the award comes with a cash prize of €10,000 ($10,800). The F:ACT award went to Ukrainian director Mstyslav Chernov (who won an Oscar for '20 Days in Mariupol') for the film '2000 Meters to Andriivka,' about a group of soldiers fighting their way through two kilometres of war-torn terrain to liberate a devastated Ukrainian village. The film reunites Chernov with '20 Days in Mariupol' producer and editor Michelle Mizner from PBS's flagship investigative journalism docu series Frontline, along with the series' editor-in-chief and exec producer Raney Aronson-Rath. CPH:DOX marks the film's European premiere following its Sundance debut in January. The F:ACT jury, comprising directors Alexis Bloom – whose 'The Bibi Files' was screening at CPH:DOX – Mikala Krogh and Steffi Niederzoll, said the film was 'a masterpiece in filmmaking: a haunting, multi-layered portrayal of war comparable to 'All Quiet on the Western Front.' But this is not the First World War, it's today.' Accepting the award, Chernov, who is working on his next project, sent a recorded video message saying: 'This is a time where we struggle for truth and for survival and this award is helping us find our ground. […] A lot of people around the world are looking at Ukraine, they hear a lot of important but abstract words. We, filmmakers, want to bring reality to people who make important decisions about how the world will look, how peace will look.' Emmy-winning director Geeta Gandbhir received a Special Mention for Sundance winner 'The Perfect Neighbor,' which dissects the deadly consequences of 'stand your ground' laws through bodycam and surveillance footage of a fatal neighborhood shooting. Netflix has acquired the Sundance-winning film, with plans for a release later this year. In the NORDIC:DOX competition, Greenland-set film 'Walls – Akinni Inuk' by Sofie Rørdam and Nina Paninnguaq Skydsbjerg took the top prize. Receiving the award on behalf of the team, producer Emile Hertling Péronard celebrated the announcement on Friday of what he called Greenland's broadest ever coalition agreement, adding that it was also a day of 'fear and frustration as an unwelcome guest lands in Greenland,' referring to the arrival of J.D. Vance at the U.S. Pituffik Space Base in northern Greenland amid threats by President Donald Trump to take over the Danish territory. In the NORDIC:DOX category, a Special Mention went to Josefine Exner and Sebastian Gerdes' 'The Nicest Men on Earth,' a portrait of Danish masculinity in a society of strong women. The winner in the NEXT:WAVE competition, dedicated to first-time talent, awarded its top prize to 'Abode of Dawn' by Kristina Shtubert, who spent a decade chronicling life inside a Christian cult in the Siberian wilderness. A Special Mention went to 'Who Witnessed the Temples Fall' by Lucía Selva, exploring the mythical Roma king Chorrojumo. In the NEW:VISION competition, which highlights artists' films, visual artist and filmmaker Juliette Le Monnyer won for 'Ramallah, Palestine, December 2018,' a single take depiction of clashes between Palestinians and Israeli soldiers in the West Bank. A Special Mention was given to 'Scrap' by Fémis graduate Noémie Lobry, a conceptual doc that weaves past and present in a dreamlike narrative. The F:ACT, NORDIC, NEXT:WAVE, NEW:VISON and HUMAN:RIGHTS awards come with a cash prize of €5,000 ($5,400) each. The HUMAN:RIGHTS Award, now in its second year, went to '9-Month Contract' by Ketevan Vashagashvili, an alumnus of the CPH:DOX's industry Change program dedicated to amplifying underrepresented voices from Eastern Europe. A Special Mention was awarded to 'The Encampments' by up-and-coming San Francisco based filmmaker Michael T. Workman, about the occupation of Colombia University by Palestinian students. The Israel-Palestine conflict remained a focal point at the festival with pro-Palestinian groups calling for the festival to take a stance on the war in Gaza, and a Danish-Palestinian filmmaker walking out of a panel discussion with a Lebanese director working with an Israeli comedian. As she opened the awards ceremony with artistic director Niklas Engstrøm, managing director Katrine Kiilgaard said: 'We believe in dialogue as a key to exploring different perspectives, challenging ingrained beliefs, and connecting across differences, even if dialogue is difficult, imperfect and never free from power dynamics. We believe in pluralism, and we aim to make room for a multitude of opinions and ideas, including those that challenge our own perspective as a festival.' Engstrøm continued: 'This also means that we will keep inviting voices from Ukraine and from Russia, even if the Russian regime has invaded Ukraine, broken basic rules of international law and been responsible for numerous human rights violations. From Palestine and from Israel, even if Israel has been illegally occupying Palestinian lands for decades, and has been responsible for numerous human rights violations since the invasion of Gaza as their reaction to the Hamas attack on October 7th, 2023.' Running under the theme 'Right Here, Right Now,' this 22nd edition of CPH:DOX hosted multiple debates on human rights and freedom of expression, and saw a 20% increase in attendance. CPH:DOX concludes on March 30. Best of Variety What's Coming to Disney+ in April 2025 New Movies Out Now in Theaters: What to See This Week The Best Celebrity Memoirs to Read This Year: From Chelsea Handler to Anthony Hopkins
Yahoo
31-01-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Ukrainian director Chernov wins Documentary Directing award at Sundance
Ukrainian journalist and director Mstyslav Chernov won the Best Documentary Direction award at the Sundance Film Festival on Jan. 31 for his film "2,000 Meters to Andriivka" in the World Cinema category. The documentary follows Ukraine's 2023 counteroffensive, as Chernov embeds with a platoon from the 3rd Separate Assault Brigade. Their mission was to liberate Andriivka, a strategically important village in Donetsk Oblast. Surrounded by mines, the village is accessible only through a narrow stretch of forest, making the battle particularly grueling. "This is the story of Ukrainian soldiers fighting for every inch of their land," Chernov said. "It's the story of a small forest and the village of Andriivka, located just two hours from my hometown. It's the story of modern warfare—how it's fought, how it's endured, and how it changes us." Chernov worked on the project with Associated Press photographer Oleksandr Babienko. The film was produced by Michelle Misner and Rainey Aronson-Rath, both of whom won an Oscar for "20 Days in Mariupol." Misner also served as the film's editor. Chernov, an acclaimed war correspondent and documentary filmmaker, was invited last year to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, a body of more than 10,000 members that votes on the annual Oscar winners. His previous film, "20 Days in Mariupol," won the Oscar for Best Documentary at the 96th Academy Awards last March. The film captures the Russian siege of Mariupol in the early weeks of the full-scale invasion, offering a firsthand account from Chernov and his team. It is the first Ukrainian-directed film to ever receive an Oscar. Read also: Curated Theft We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Yahoo
30-01-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
In ‘2000 Meters to Andriivka,' Oscar winner takes viewers back to Ukraine's front lines
PARK CITY, Utah (AP) — The day Mstyslav Chernov won the BAFTA for his documentary '20 Days in Mariupol' was the day he learned two soldiers he knew had been killed in combat. They were primary subjects of his new film '2000 Meters to Andriivka,' a harrowing portrait of modern warfare that puts audiences on the front lines of the 2023 Ukrainian counteroffensive. 'The film changed along the way,' Chernov, a videojournalist with The Associated Press, said last week after its premiere at the Sundance Film Festival. 'From a story of the success of that operation it became a story of loss, of memory, of the price that soldiers pay for every single inch of the land. And that's where the name came from.' Coming back to Park City, Utah, with a new film has been a sobering, full circle moment for Chernov. It's the place where he first showcased '20 Days in Mariupol" two years ago. Although he received the highest honors a journalist and a filmmaker can get for his work, a Pulitzer Prize and an Oscar included, it's for reportage on a war in his home country that won't end and that he can't stop covering. The AP spoke to Chernov about '2000 Meters to Andriivka,' a co-production between the AP and PBS Frontline, the cognitive dissonance of whiplashing between a movie release and the front lines as well as his responsibility to Ukraine. Remarks have been edited for clarity and brevity. AP: Two years ago at Sundance, you were eager to go back to Ukraine. Was this already on your mind that you wanted to show the soldiers? CHERNOV: I gave a lot of thought after I left Mariupol. Do I want to continue doing what I was doing? We felt a lot of trauma and a lot of loss, guilt even, that we didn't do enough. But then again, that tragedy you go through, the tragedy of people who you're filming, it doesn't let you to just stop doing what you do. You always want to do more and you actually can't stop. At every point in this journey I was also editing '20 Days in Mariupol' and then it went on to screen all over the world. The response was great, but more I felt that response and more I saw that things are not changing, more I wanted to go back and to continue shooting, and that's what I did. At some point in summer of 2023, when Ukraine had a highly anticipated and very important counteroffensive, we also had our theatrical release for '20 Days in Mariupol.' So from LA, where at Laemmle Cinema, you would see 'Barbie' and 'Oppenheimer' and '20 Days in Mariupol' posters and (after) speaking to the public, I would fly back to Poland, drive to the front line and start shooting this film. The story of Andriivka captured me so much that I would go back and keep following the platoon. And the tragedy was that as more time passed more people who we initially filmed on the journey to Andriivka have died. AP: With '20 Days in Mariupol' you found yourself in situations and knew to keep shooting. Here, you went in knowing you wanted to make a film. How did that change what you were doing? CHERNOV: Making '20 Days in Mariupol' and seeing the impact it ultimately had, seeing how big the audience was, made me think that the impact of journalism could be complemented with an impact of documentary filmmaking and that combination, if you can find the right balance between those two approaches, could be very powerful. The form of the cinema is much more long lasting than the news. As important as journalism is, unfortunately, there's just so much of things happening in the world, so many important stories, that it takes extraordinary efforts to keep someone's attention on the story, especially if that story is important to you personally. And the story of Andriivka and the soldiers who are trying to get there is personally very important to me. AP: This film puts audiences on the front line in ways that we're only used to seeing in fictional war films. How were able to do that? CHERNOV: Technology is changing. The audience is changing. So the medium of documentary that talks about important current events has to change as well. To be able to catch up, we constantly need to search for new forms, for new ways of telling the story, for new visual solutions to that. The making of '2000 Meters to Andriivka,' the approach is experimental. We are trying to show modern warfare the way no one has done it before or since. Of course there are elements that are classic for the documentary, but I also wanted the story to be so immersive, so on the ground, so experiential for the audience, that they forget that they are watching a narrative fiction film or a documentary. Then when they reach the end of the film, when they realize that everything they just saw was real, it would hit them even harder. AP: You gave one of the all-time great Oscar speeches. Was Andriivka heavy on your mind when you took that stage? CHERNOV: I was thinking about all the boys, yes, when I was on stage. There'd been so many things happening in the background when we were sitting in that beautiful place with all the movie stars and seeing the speeches that they were giving. I had got hundreds of messages of people who were telling me what to say on the stage, all important. I had a feeling that 40 million Ukrainians, if I will be lucky to go on that stage, will be watching me and every single word that will be said. There is a responsibility, a responsibility to journalism and a responsibility to me being Ukrainian, the responsibility to the people of Mariupol and responsibility to these soldiers that I was, by that time, filming for almost a year. AP: What has all of this meant to friends at home, to the people of Ukraine? CHERNOV: After the premiere, we received a lot of messages or just comments on social media that it is so timely to have a film like that when there are almost no reports, either journalistic or documentary from the front line from the perspective of a soldier. Partially because the interest has shifted elsewhere. Partially because it has become impossible to work at the front line because of the drones, because of the how precise and deadly weapons are and because journalists have become targets. I think people are just grateful for that. They say, thank you for showing that perspective and thank you for reminding the world about Ukraine, that it is not just a political chip in a bargaining, that it is actually real people. And that's what we have to keep in mind, that these are real people. These are not numbers and not distances. ___ For more coverage of the 2025 Sundance Film Festival, visit: Lindsey Bahr, The Associated Press
