Pylyp Illienko

During an interesting era in the history of Eastern Europe when Russia, under Peter the Great, and Sweden, under King Charles XII, struggled for power, Ukraine was the pawn in the middle. In 1709, Ivan Mazepa, Hetman of Ukraine, which was part of the Russian Empire, signed a pact with the Swedish king promising to support Sweden in its war against Russia provided that Ukraine was given its independence.

Kharkiv, the 1930s. The heyday of Ukrainian art. Ambitious young poet Vladimir Akimov happily settles in at the new luxury "Slovo" House built specifically for artists. He comes from the provinces and works as a proof-reader in a printing press, and has never even dreamed of living under one roof with prominent Ukrainian writers and artists. He thinks his own poetry is genius, but nobody takes his literary efforts seriously, not to mention the occasional chuckles over his epigone poems. But fate smiles at him. The head of the political intelligence agency suggests that he become the author of a play written earlier. Akimov agrees, signing a non- disclosure note. The poet has no idea what price he will pay for this success. “‘Slovo’ House” is a story about a generation of Ukrainian artists persecuted by the totalitarian system, unfolding against the backdrop of one of the largest genocides of the 20th century: the Holodomor, which caused the death of almost 7 million people.

Mavka, a water nymph, loves Lukash, a country youth. Their brief happiness ends when Lukash is forced to marry the shrewish Kilina. The spirit of the forest turns Lukash into a wolf as punishment for his infidelity. The strength of Mavka's love breaks the spell, but Kilina curses the nymph, transforming her into a weeping willow. This beautiful and tragic story is based on a play written in 1912 by Lesya Ukrainka, a Ukrainian poet, writer and political, civil and female activist, and includes mythological characters taken from Ukrainian folklore.

Documentary hommage to Sergey Parajanov on the occasion of his 100 anniversary. Witness the blend of unique archive material with surrealistic puppetry scenes, seamlessly blurring the lines between imagination and reality.

A convict is forced to hide within a model of a hammer and sickle. Here a tragic romance ensues between the convict and woman worker; which is spoilt by the woman's jealous young son. The convict is then forced to undergo a tragic bid for freedom which ends with the beauty of swans contrasted with the imprisoned convicts and the hopeful but ultimately tragic wait by the woman for her lover.

The film is a poetic adaptation of a series of stories (oral and written) about Princess Olha of Kyivan Rus' (Ukraine-Rusʹ) at the start of the 11th century. Inspired by chronicles and folk legends this is a story of a common girl Olha who married Prince Ihor and became his successor on the throne after his murder and one of the most remarkable political leaders in early medieval European history. She converted to Christianity and brought her realm into Europe.

Vasyl Vilgota raised two sons. One of them died on the fronts of the Second World War, defending the homeland, and the second served as Hilfspolizei. Vilgota himself also helped the Nazis. Although he carefully hides this fact of his biography, there is one man who knows the truth about him.

In the near future, the main character Alice finds herself on a deserted island. To survive, she relies on the superintelligence of an artificial advisor — the size of a pea, which is inserted into her ear. This becomes the starting point for reflecting on the consequences of human dependence on technology.