The animated film “I Died in Irpin” by Ukrainian director Anastasiia Falileieva won the top award at the international film festival in Innsbruck (IFFI), Austria. The film was named the best short film in the VOLKSBANK Tirol competition and received a prize of 1,000 euros. This was reported on the IFFI website.
“I Died in Irpin” is an 11-minute animated film co-produced by the Czech Republic and Ukraine. In the film, the director tells a personal story about the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
On February 24, 2022, Anastasiia Falileieva and her boyfriend fled Kyiv to his parents’ home in Irpin. However, the city quickly became the epicenter of heavy fighting and war crimes. In the film, the director uses charcoal drawings on paper to create surreal images intertwined with video footage.
The film has already won the grand prize at the LINOLEUM festival, triumphed at the Kyiv International Short Film Festival (KISFF), and received the national film critics’ award “Kinokolo.”
At the Innsbruck festival, the jury praised the film’s deep emotional impact, its unique animation style, and strong authorial voice.
Anastasiia Falileieva previously said her film is an attempt to comprehend what happened and to preserve the memory of the events in Irpin.
“I Died in Irpin” is yet another example of how Ukrainian cinema draws global attention to real stories of war and human tragedy.
