Ukrainian film production company Real Pictures has begun production of the feature-length documentary Hearts of Coal, directed by Regina Maryanovska-Davidzon. The film is being co-produced with French production company TS Productions, with the participation of the Franco-German television channel ARTE and Ukraine's public broadcaster Suspilne.
The documentary follows Ukrainian women miners who continue working underground during the full-scale war, close to the front line. Through their personal stories, daily work, relationships and dreams, the film explores women's strength, resilience and determination to embrace life despite the war.
The film centres on four women whose lives are intertwined through the mine.
Viktoriia, 33, is raising her ten-year-old son on her own while experiencing a new romance with her colleague Dmytro.
Oksana, 54, is a displaced woman from the devastated city of Bakhmut. A former children's dance teacher, she is trying to rebuild her life.
Maryna, 53, devotes all her free time to helping Ukrainian servicemen.
Her colleague Oksana, 55, operates the mine hoist, lowering and raising miners every day. Together with her family, she also supports the volunteer movement, which her husband joined back in 2014.
"For me, it is important to portray life in a frontline city not only through the prism of war, but above all through the everyday experiences of its residents. In the seemingly ordinary actions of our protagonists — their daily work, caring for loved ones, their desire to love and build a future — we see genuine courage and quiet resistance to war. It is precisely these small acts, which often go unnoticed, that become a form of heroism and sustain life even in the most difficult circumstances," said director and producer Regina Maryanovska-Davidzon.
The project was developed with the support of the Ukrainian Cultural Foundation (UCF) and was recommended for funding under the Ukrainian Ministry of Culture's state programme 1000 Vesna.
