Between the Frames

With the full-scale russian invasion of Ukraine, twelve-year-old Mykyta together with his parents and younger brother, had to flee their home in Vuhledar, a small mining town in Donetsk Oblast. Having settled at a new place, they put all their strength into resuming the operation of their main family work, a club for children who are interested in robotics and programming. While preparing for the main event, the World Robot Olympiad, Mykyta and his team partner Oleksii are going through a lot of trial and error. But despite everything, they actively move forward, proving that hard work towards your goal with a true passion for it can help you get through the most difficult times.

The film’s events take place on a single day: August 24, 2022, the day Ukraine celebrates the 31st anniversary of the renewal of independent statehood. The film combines places and people that best capture the country’s wartime spirit. The locations are: the relatively safe cities of Kyiv and Lviv; the cities under daily missile fire of Kharkiv and Mykolaiv; a trench at the frontlines near Donetsk; and the beaches of Odesa. The film presents a day in the life of a beach police patrol, a woman anti-tank missile operator, a water delivery driver, a mortar unit soldier, a rapid assault unit soldier, a 14-year-old pub janitor, an artist and a former member of parliament. Together, these people and places create an engaging mosaic of a day in the life of Ukraine.

The film tells the story of several volunteers, soldiers of the International Legion of the General Staff of the Unified Armed Forces, a unit called Ronin Team. During their service, the soldiers become true friends: they work, study and rest together. However, a time of trials for the courage and skills of the legionnaires comes. The hot summer months are not easy for them. And not all recruits can withstand the high pace of training and service. Meanwhile, troubling news of the Russian offensive comes from the front.

Exchange of prisoners of war. In the hospital courtyard, hundreds of relatives have gathered — far more than the number of freed Ukrainian service members. Who will embrace their loved one today, and who will have to keep waiting? The first moments of reunion become the climax, as people and viewers share anticipation.