The film “2000 Meters to Andriivka” by director and founder of the Ukrainian Association of Professional Photographers Mstislav Chernov will be shown at the opening ceremony of the 78th Cannes Film Festival on Tuesday, May 13. The film will be part of the “Day of Ukraine” program dedicated to the Russian-Ukrainian war. The program is organized by the festival in collaboration with France Télévisions and Brut.
“2000 Meters to Andriivka” transports viewers to the front lines of the Russian-Ukrainian war, telling the story of the liberation of the village of Andriivka near Bakhmut by the 3rd Separate Assault Brigade. Filming took place during the Ukrainian Armed Forces' counteroffensive in 2023, when soldiers advanced meter by meter through occupied territory. The film's director, photojournalist, and Oscar winner Mstislav Chernov once again becomes a witness and participant in the fighting, documenting the lives of soldiers on the front lines, their struggle, and their dedication to defending their homeland.
Festival program
The “Day of Ukraine” program will begin at the Palais des Festivals in Salle Bazin at 10:00 a.m. with a screening of a film about Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. At 1:30 p.m., viewers will be able to see the documentary “Notre Guerre” by Bernard-Henri Lévy and Marc Roussel, which tells about the realities of the front lines in eastern Ukraine. The program will conclude with a screening of Mstislav Chernov's film “2000 Meters to Andriivka” at 3:30 p.m.
This cinematic event highlights the Cannes Film Festival's commitment to giving a voice to artists and journalists who tell the story of the war in Ukraine and its consequences for the whole world. The Cannes Film Festival, together with France Télévisions and Brut, reaffirms its support for those who bear witness to contemporary challenges and fight for the truth.
Chernov's new documentary, 2000 Meters to Andriivka, won the award for Best Director in the International Documentary Competition at the Sundance Film Festival.
Mstislav Chernov is a Ukrainian photographer, Associated Press journalist, director, war correspondent, president of the Ukrainian Association of Professional Photographers, honorary member of Ukrainian PEN, and writer. He covered the Revolution of Dignity, the war in eastern Ukraine, the aftermath of the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17, the Syrian civil war, the battles of Mosul in Iraq, and the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, including the blockade of Mariupol. For this work, he has received the Deutsche Welle Freedom of Speech Award, the Georgiy Gongadze Award, the Knight International Journalism Awards, the Biagio Agnes Award, the Bayeux Calvados-Normandy Award, the Elijah Parish Lovejoy Award, and the Free Media Awards. At the end of 2022, he was included in the rankings “People of NV 2022 in the Year of War” and “14 songs, photos, and art objects that became symbols of Ukrainian resistance” by Forbes Ukraine, and his video footage from Mariupol became the basis for the film “20 Days in Mariupol,” which in 2024 became the first Ukrainian film in history to win an Oscar.
Photographer's social networks: Facebook Instagram
Contributors:
Researcher and author: Vira Labych
Image editor: Olga Kovalova
Literary editor: Yulia Futey
Website manager: Vladislav Kukhar
.png)
