01-04-2025
Doc Talk Podcast: Oscar Winner Mstyslav Chernov On Being In The Oval Office When Trump Berated Zelensky, Plus CPH:DOX's Niklas Engstrøm On Europe's Trump Dilemma
The scene shocked the world: President Donald Trump inviting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to the Oval Office on February 28, only to verbally attack him in front of the media and accuse him of fomenting World War III. Vice President J.D. Vance, eager to please his boss, dressed down Zelensky over what he considered his unsuitable attire.
It turns out Oscar-winning filmmaker Mstyslav Chernov was in the Oval Office with the Ukrainian leader on that stunning day. He joins the latest edition of Deadline's Doc Talk podcast to share his reaction to the shocking exchange that saw Zelensky ejected from the White House. He says the response by the Ukrainian people to that disrespectful treatment may come as a surprise to Trump and his Veep.
More from Deadline
'This Is Going To Be Great Television': Trump Creates Yet Another Shocking Oval Office Moment, But This Time The Stakes Could Not Be Higher
Doc Talk Podcast Debates Oscar Results And Travels To The True/False Film Fest
A Star Is Born In 'Flophouse America': Captivating Mikal Navigates Poverty And His Parents' Drinking In CPH:DOX World Premiere
Chernov, who won the Academy Award a year ago for his documentary 20 Days in Mariupol, tells us about his new film, 2000 Meters to Andriivka, also set in wartime Ukraine. The feature doc, which just won the F:ACT Award at CPH:DOX in Copenhagen, goes into the trenches with Ukrainian soldiers as they try to retake a village seized by Russian invaders.
At CPH:DOX we also talk with festival artistic director Niklas Engstrøm, an architect behind CPH:DOX's rise to becoming one of the world's most important nonfiction cinematic showcases. Engstrøm explains how the festival presciently chose human rights as the theme of this year's event months before the U.S. presidential election that returned Trump to office, where the president has made 'power … the only really important thing in international politics,' in Engstrøm's words.
He describes the times we're living in as 'scary' and says Europe is reacting with alarm to Trump's efforts to remake the world order – strengthening ties with Russia at the apparent expense of America's NATO allies. Engstrøm characterizes the souring of the relationship between the U.S. and Europe as the end of an 80-year marriage.
That's on the new episode of Doc Talk, hosted by Oscar winner John Ridley (12 Years a Slave, Shirley) and Matt Carey, Deadline's documentary editor. The pod is a production of Deadline and Ridley's Nō Studios.
Listen to the episode above or on major podcast platforms including Spotify, iHeart and Apple.
Best of Deadline
'The White Lotus' Season 3 Release Schedule: When Do New Episodes Arrive On Max?
'The White Lotus' Season 3: Everything We Know About The Cast, Premiere Date & More
2025 TV Series Renewals: Photo Gallery
