Ember
An elderly couple is trapped in their village near Kyiv as it falls under Russian occupation. When a fire destroys their home, they are forced to seek refuge with neighbors and find a way out.
My Undesirable Friends: Part I - Last Air in Moscow
American filmmaker Julia Loktev, born in the Soviet Union, returned to Moscow in 2021 to make a documentary on the persistence of independent media journalism in Putin’s Russia—just months, as it turned out, before the country’s invasion of Ukraine. Structured in five chapters, Loktev’s film is an extraordinary vérité document of a moment of immense change and anxiety.
The long february - What happened in Bucha?
The Long February tells the story of the Russian occupation of the Bucha region through the eyes of those who survived it. Combining testimonies of civilians, police officers and artists with private footage shared by the participants themselves and archival material, the film explores not only the occupation itself but also its lasting human consequences. Rather than ending with Bucha's liberation, The Long February examines memory, trauma and resilience, revealing how the war continues to shape the lives of Bucha's residents.
Torture Culture
Torture in Russian captivity is systematic. In a new documentary, The Kyiv Independent’s War Crimes Investigations Unit uncovers the torture of Ukrainian civilians held by Russian forces and traces the roots of these practices through Russian history. The documentary features civilians from different regions and backgrounds who were detained in occupied Ukrainian territories and in Russia itself. Despite being held at different times and in different locations, their testimonies describe strikingly similar patterns of abuse. By combining firsthand accounts with historical research, the investigation shows how torture has persisted across generations and continues to shape Russia’s war against Ukraine.
My Undesirable Friends: Part II - Exile
A group of Russian independent journalists flee the country and navigate life in exile after the invasion of Ukraine, focusing on their dispersed lives and ongoing struggle for truth across different nations. While Part I documented their lives in Moscow facing mounting pressure from the Putin regime, Part II chronicles their forced displacement and new realities in various countries, continuing their mission against authoritarianism.