Sjors Swierstra

Shelter is a virtual reality documentary directed by Sjors Swierstra (The Netherlands) and co-directed by Ivanna Khitsinska (Ukraine) that offers an intimate look at the war in Ukraine. The film immerses the viewer in everyday scenes: from a tender conversation between pregnant women in an underground maternity ward in Kyiv to the heart-wrenching funeral of a soldier in Lviv. From the tense preparation of soldiers in a frontline barracks to the breathtaking performance of a symphony orchestra in a basement in Kharkiv. In Shelter, the audience is invited to step into a virtual space with people from Ukraine, to witness moments of shared humanity and reflect on the cost of war.

What happens in your childhood defines your life, according to artist Armando. His childhood was defined by one crucial incident; a boy kills a German soldier in the woods during the Second World War. The story recurs in Armando’s work in many forms.: an ill-fated event, a victim that becomes a perpetrator, a guilty forest that witnessed everything but remains silent. Was Armando involved in the fateful event or did he invent a tragedy of mythological proportions? Filmmakers Sjors Swierstra and Roelof Jan Minneboo go in search of answers.

Ready for a new perspective? Ammodo Docs presents artistic shorts about original minds. In 15-minute films, renowned Dutch filmmakers challenge you to see the world through the eyes of pioneers in the arts and sciences. Ammodo Docs. Forward-thinking films.