The international film and TV industry is responding to the war in Ukraine with various support initiatives to try to help the millions of people affected.
Screen is collecting a list, below, of initiatives that are seeking to benefit or offer support to the people of Ukraine and those displaced from the country.
We are looking to gather as many relevant initiatives as possible. Please email details about the initiative, where it is based and how people can get involved, to Screen here.
Ukraine: film & TV support initiatives
Actresses and Actors - Germany’s Federal Association of Film and Television Actors (BFFS) has teamed with the International Casting Directors Network (ICDN) on Actress and Actors, a digital platform to provide visibility for Ukrainian acting talent who have had to leave their homeland due to the war. Performers’ profiles are automatically integrated via European casting service Castupload. For further details on the free service, click here.
Alina Gorlova screenings - European sales companies Filmotor and Square Eyes have teamed up to offer screenings of Ukrainian filmmaker Alina Gorlova’s anti-war features This Rain Will Never Stop and No Obvious Signs. All proceeds will go to a support fund for filmmakers on the ground in Ukraine. To book screenings, contact Wouter Jansen at Square Eyes here and/or Michaela Cajkova at Filmotor here.
All-Ukrainian Photo Cinema Administration - Architect and camera historian Richard Bossons is raising funds for the Oleksandr Dovzhenko National Centre in Kyiv, for its international archive. To donate via GoFundMe, click here.
Border Crossing Film Festival – A film festival is holding free screenings for children and families at official refugee reception centres both at the Polish-Ukrainian border and throughout Poland. Translators and volunteers are required; for further information click here and/or email here.
Chernobyl: The Lost Tapes screening - Bertha DocHouse in London has organised a screening of 2022 TV documentary Chernobyl: The Lost Tapes on Wednesday, March 16 with introduction from director James Jones. 100% of all income from ticket sales will go to the DEC Red Cross Ukraine crisis appeal; for further information and to purchase tickets, click here.
CinemAid Ukraine Charity Film Marathon - from April 1-3, a 10-film marathon of Ukrainian titles will run at Warsaw’s Kinoteka multiplex. Organised by the Ukrainian Film Agency, Polish Film Institute, Kinoteka Poland, and the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry. Funds will go to organisations including the Come Back Alive charitable foundation supporting service people and veterans fighting in the war; for further information, click here.
DEFA Foundation support - Germany’s DEFA Foundation has pledged financial support for Ukraine’s leading film archive, the Dovzhenko Centre in Kyiv. It will donate part of last year’s income from German dubbed versions of films produced in the Soviet Union, and is serving as a central collection point for donations from other institutions and private individiuals. For further information, head to the DEFA website here.
DocuDays UA support – Ukraine’s DocuDays UA International Human Rights Documentary Film Festival has had to cancel its 2022 edition, and is fundraising to support the festival team, many of whom are still in Ukraine. Donate here.
East Doc Platform - Prague-based co-production, funding and distribution event East Doc Platform has organised screenings of three Ukrainian films: Ulyana Osovska and Denys Strashny’s Tales Of A Toy Horse, Alina Gorlova’s This Rain Will Never Stop and Iryna Tsilyk’s The Earth Is Blue As An Orange. All proceeds from voluntary entrance fees will go to filmmakers who have stayed in Ukraine, which includes the four for the mentioned titles; the money will be processed through the International Coalition for Filmmakers at Risk. For further information on the screenings, click here.
enCAST actors initiative - Casting website enCAST has waived all fees on its site for Ukrainian actors, allowing them access to jobs, resources and one-to-one personal help with finding work. The site is suspending all listings in Russia unless the production has publicly condemned the war; and will match any income made by Russian and Belorussian actors from the site with charitable donations to help Ukrainian refugees. For further information, click here.
European Producers Club fundraising – The European Producers Club (EPC) is raising funds to buy first-aid kits and protective clothing for the Ukrainian people. To help, email the EPC here.
Film Sales Support initiative - European Film Promotion has launched an initiative through which European sales agents eligible for MEDIA funding will be able to include Ukrainian titles in their line-ups at the Tribeca and Shanghai film festivals as well as Cannes’ Marché du Film. For further information, click here.
Filmmakers-for-Ukraine - Production network platform Crew United has launched Filmmakers-for-Ukraine, an information website to provide assistance for Ukrainian filmmakers and their families. The site also aims to assist disadvantaged groups and minorities; it includes information on transport, shelter, work, medical assistance, food, clothing, plus psychological and legal aid. To help with the efforts, contact Filmmakers-for-Ukraine here; and visit the site here.
German funds donation - Eight German film funds and the German film board (FFA) have donated €100,000 for the emergency fund launched by the International Coalition for Filmmakers at Risk. The money will benefit filmmakers in Ukraine who are currently in direct danger as well as filmmakers in Russia and Belarus who are openly speaking out against the war. For further information about the fund, click here.
Hamburg free screenings for children - Filmfest Hamburg’s Michel children’s film festival is collaborating with the city’s Abaton-Kino for Ukrainian-dubbed screenings of childrens films including Paddington, with the eponymous bear voiced by Ukrainian president Zelenskiy. For Abaton-Kino details, click here. Zeise Kinos has also programmed four dialogue-free titles including The Artist - for schedules and further details, click here.
Help for Ukrainian Citizens - The Polish Film Institute has launched Help for Ukrainian Citizens, a section on its website to help those needing office space or legal assistance. The Institute’s festivals and international projects manager Marzena Kleban is coordinating offers of work for Ukrainian filmmakers - to offer work, get in touch here.
ICFR fundraising – The International Coalition for Filmmakers at Risk is gathering donations to assist with legal fees and relocation expenses. For more information and to donate, click here.
Kino Úsmev - Slovakia’s Kino Úsmev is located in the eastern town of Kosice, an hour from the Ukrainian border. The cinema is providing a safe space for Ukrainian refugees to relax, use facilities and find information. It has offered Kyiv screenwriter Oksana Savchenko its Artist in Residency for her and her family to stay in Kosice; and is running a ‘You’re Welcome’ programme of free screenings to bring Ukrainian and Slovak families together. For more information, click here.
Klitschko screenings - German cinema chain Cineplex is teaming with distributor Majestic Film on benefit screenings in over 500 cinemas of Sebastian Dehnhardt’s 2011 documentary Klitschko, about the world champion Ukrainian boxers Vitali and Wladimir Klitschko (Vitali is now mayor of Ukrainian capital Kyiv). The initiative has support from the UCI, Cinemaxx, Cinestar and Cineplex chains plus the German exhibitors association, and is raising money for German children’s charity Ein Herz für Kinder. For further information click here.
Klondike screening - The German Producers Association is holding a benefit screening on March 22 in cooperation with Berlin’s Yorck Cinema Group of Ukrainian feature Klondike, which debuted at Sundance before playing in Panorama at the Berlinale. Director Maryna Er Gorbach and her producers will attend the screening; proceeds will go to Voices for Children and the International Coalition for Filmmakers at Risk. For further information and to book tickets, click here.
Mariupol focus - Ukrainian VOD platform Takflix has programmed a collection of short films under the banner ‘Mariupol, I Love You’, to raise funds for Mariupol City Council and humanitarian missions in the besieged city. The films are available worldwide with English subtitles; for more information, click here.
New Horizons screenings - Poland’s New Horizons Association, which runs the New Horizons International Film Festival, has organised screenings of films for children in aid of the Ocalenie Foundation, which helps refugees build a new life in Poland. The Association’s Kids Kino section has also organised a catalogue of children’s films and series to be translated into Ukrainian, and made available free-of-charge on the New Horizons VOD platform. For further details, click here.
New Start job portal - The German Producers Alliance has teamed up with broadcasters ARD and ZDF, plus trade unions and employers associations, to launch New Start, a portal to support Ukrainian refugees searching for employment in the culture, film and media sectors. It currently hosts over 44,000 job advertisments; the site, from Berlin-based software firm Jobnet AG, is available in German, Ukrainian and English. To access the site, click here.
Olga previews - The British Film Institute and 606 Distribution have organised preview charity screenings of Elie Grappe’s Cannes 2021 Critics’ Week title Olga, about a 15-year-old Ukrainian gymnast training for the European Championships, who is forced to move from her home in Kyiv to Switzerland due to the Euromaidan protests in 2013. Lead actress Anastasia Budiashkina, a former member of Ukraine’s national gymnastics team, has arrived in Poland after leaving Kharkiv in Ukraine to escape the war. Preview screenings will take place in over 200 cinemas from Friday March 18, with participation from Cineworld, Curzon, Everyman, Odeon, Picturehouse and Vue chains, plus the BFI Film Audience Network cinemas. A donation will be made to the Disasters Emergency Committee from each ticket sold; for further information, click here.
PÖFF Goes To Cannes - Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival (PÖFF) and the Industry@Tallinn & Baltic Event will present five feature projects from Ukrainian filmmakers at this year’s Goes To Cannes works-in-progress showcase at the Marché du Film. Participation is free and includes a market badge. For more information, contact Triin Tramberg at PÖFF here.
PriFest - The 14th edition of the Prishtina International Film Festival (PriFest, 26 - 31 July) in Kosovo will present a special programme of films by young Ukrainian filmmakers which were originally going to screen at its 13th edition of Odesa International Film Festival (OIFF) at the end of July. Industry platform PriForum will showcase 10 new Ukrainian feature film projects, and the Ukrainian filmmakers will be invited to attend the Prishtina Rendezvous weekend event to meet sales agents, producers and festival selectors. For further information, click here.
Putin’s Witnesses screenings – On Tuesday, March 8, cinemas across the Czech Republic are hosting screenings of Vitaliy Manskiy’s documentary Putin’s Witnesses, about the political machine that brought Vladimir Putin to power in Russia. Profit from all ticket sales will go to the SOS Ukraine collection. For details, click here.
Reflection screenings – New Europe Film Sales has renounced the right to any commission on Valentyn Vasyanovych’s Ukrainian Venice 2021 Competition title Reflection, which tells the story of a Ukrainian surgeon captured by Russian military forces in Eastern Ukraine. For any distributors, exhibitors or festival programmers looking to book the film, New Europe will also assist with deliverables at no cost; all revenues will go to the film’s Ukrainian producers. For more information, click here.
Rhino screenings - With select cinemas in Ukraine reopening operations, Ukrainian distributor Arthouse Traffic is releasing Oleg Sentsov’s 2021 feature Rhino, initially in nine locations. Ten hryvnias from each ticket will be donated to the Come Back Alive charitable foundation supporting service people and veterans fighting in the war - for further information, click here.
Sarajevo residency, country status - To support the Ukrainian film industry, Sarajevo Film Festival (SFF) has launched a residency programme for Ukrainian filmmakers, who will bring projects in development and postproduction to the festival, where they will be presented in the CineLink industry strand. SFF has also added Ukraine to the list of Southeast European countries eligible for the event’s competitive sections for feature, documentary, short and student films; plus the In Focus programme; CineLink Film Industry Days programme; and Talents Sarajevo programme for upcoming film professionals. The festival has also posted Sergei Loznitsa’s short Reflections, which was made as part of 2014 film omnibus Bridges of Sarajevo, to its YouTube channel here.
Sheffield DocFest-DocuDays UA collaboration - Sheffield DocFest is collaborating with Ukrainian documentary event DocuDays UA on Password: Palianytsia, a Ukraine focus across the festival programme. Elements include four feature documentaries in the Official Selection of both festivals; five Ukrainian projects in Sheffield DocFest’s MeetMarket; and a Ukrainian delegation of filmmakers and artists supported by the British Council. Head to the DocFest website for further information here.
TransilvaniaInternational Film Festival - The festival (June 17-26) has launched TIFF For Ukraine, an initiative dedicated to the Ukrainian community and filmmakers. The festival’s line-up includes films from Ukrainian directors including Valentyn Vasyanovych’s Reflection and Oleg Sentsov’s Rhino. EducaTIFF, the section of the festival dedicated to children and teenagers, will include films with Ukrainian subtitles. Also, Ukrainian citizen will have free access to all festival films screened in the Unirii Square based on their ID. Festival guests and spectators will be encouraged to support the Ukrainian film industry with a text-to-donate campaign. All funds raised during the campaign will be distributed to industry professionals with the help of the International Coalition for Filmmakers at Risk (ICFR).- The full schedule for TIFF for Ukraine will be released soon.
True Story - UK-based documentary streaming platform True Story is hosting four films from Ukrainian filmmakers, with all of True Story’s share going to humanitarian aid organisations in Ukraine. To watch the films, click here.
Ukraine Days - Screenings at the Amirani Cinema in Tbilisi, Georgia from March 5-8 of fiction and non-fiction films about Ukraine, primarily the Maidan Revolution and Russian occupation. All money from ticket sales will go to the Hospitallers, a volunteer organisation assisting with the evacuation of the wounded from Ukraine; for further details, click here.
Valentyn Vasyanovych screenings - Yoshi Yatabe, former programming director at Tokyo International Film Festival, has arranged screenings from March 29-31 of Atlantis and Reflection, two films by Ukrainian director Valentyn Vasyanovych. The screening costs are being covered through crowdfunding; while any amount raised through ticket sales will go to the International Coalition for Filmmakers at Risk. For more information and to purchase tickets, click here.
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