The Ukrainian Storybox documentary project will tell the story of the full-scale war in Ukraine through the testimonies of people who directly experienced these events. A special video booth was created for the filming of the film in London: it is a symbol of the project and a safe space in which people share their feelings, emotions and powerful evidence of the horrors that Ukraine is experiencing today.
Ukrainian Storybox is a unique documentary in which ordinary Ukrainians can tell in their own words the story of how their lives changed after the full-scale Russian invasion on February 24. The testimonies we collect from many people in the video booth are vivid, powerful, personal and honest. They reflect an extraordinary moment in the history of Ukraine.
David Belton
David Belton is an award-winning director with 30 years of directing experience. On the BBC, he covered the collapse of the Soviet Union, the war in Bosnia and the Rwandan genocide for Newsnight. Wrote the story for the film Shooting Dogs, earning him a BAFTA nomination. In 2008, David moved to the US and directed the Emmy Award-winning PBS series God in America and Amish. His work also includes historical films for the BBC and series for Netflix (Captive), Amazon (This Is Football) and Channel 4 (Lost World).
The first stage of Ukrainian Storybox filming took place in Zaporizhzhia. About 30 heroes took part in it, including military personnel, internally displaced persons, volunteers, people who were under occupation, mothers and women, children and elderly people who are experiencing war for the second time. The next filming will take place in Odessa, Lviv, Chernihiv, Kharkiv, and Kyiv.
The project is implemented by the film company "MMD PRO" (Ukraine) together with the production company LOOKSFilm (Germany) and the television company Yard 44 (Great Britain).
This international project is a mouthpiece for the voices of Ukrainians, which should be heard and should not be forgotten. Even when the world gets tired of hearing about other people's tragedies, when over time Ukraine will move from the front pages to notes about the course of events, living voices and real stories of people will remind the world from big screens and film festivals about the immeasurable pain of Ukraine, about the incredible strength and courage of the Ukrainian people.
The general producer of the film is Roman Martynenko
The presentation of the Ukrainian Storybox film is planned for February 2023 during the Berlin Film Festival. The project is carried out with the assistance of the Ukrainian State Film Agency.
