"We continue to "break down the walls": team of Oscar nominee "House Made of Splinters" comments on results of award ceremony
This year, the documentary film "A House Made of Splinters" was the only film about Ukraine nominated for an Oscar. The production team has shared their thoughts on the results of the Academy Awards.
"We are very proud and happy that we were nominated for an Oscar and had the opportunity to continue talking about the war against Ukraine and the long-term consequences of the war on children. We are with Ukraine", said the film's producer Monica Hellstrom, whose projects have already been nominated for an Oscar three times.
Even though the film, directed by Simon Lereng Wilmont and Azad Safarov, was shot in the Lysychansk Centre for social and psychological rehabilitation of children, 20 kilometres from the front line (and now Lysychansk is generally under occupation), American film academies awarded a film about Russian politician Alexey Navalny. This caused an outrage among Ukrainians.
One of the Ukrainian co-producers of the film Daria Bassel says: to all those who disagree with the results and want to support 'A House Made of Splinters ", it is worth paying attention to the fact that it is currently available at the box office in Kyiv and Lviv.
"The fact that "A House Made of Splinters "received an Oscar nomination shows that this is a real, talented, important film. Now, this film can be seen in Ukrainian cinemas. So, I invite everyone worried about the fate of the Oscars to the cinemas. Also, visit the website of the Voices of the Children Foundation. Azad Safarov and Olena Rozvadovska created this foundation during their work on the film. They help children from high-risk areas. The foundation needs our support. Just like in Ukrainian cinema", – Bassel emphasised.
"The film also highlights the long-term effects of war on our generation in the future, including the story of human fragility and resilience. Therefore, the Oscar nomination means some attention to Ukraine already", Viktoria Khomenko, the second Ukrainian co-producer of the film, added.
At the ceremony in Los Angeles, "A House Made of Splinters " was represented by a team from all four countries – Ukraine, Denmark, Sweden and Finland. Line producer and second Director Azad Safarov, coordinator and consultant of the film Olena Rozvadovska, as well as the film's heroines, teachers of the Lysychansk Center Olha Tronova and Marharyta Burlutska, arrived from Ukraine.
"We need to believe that we can make cool documentaries. Because if we want the world to watch our movies, we must also be interested in them. There is no need to look for Hollywood Stories in Ukraine now because every Ukrainian has such a story. And these stories must be constantly told to the world. And the simplest thing every Ukrainian can do today is to go to the cinema for a movie. The feed must show the absolute truth. Our foundation takes care of such children who are depicted in the film, so we will be happy to support our activities. We continue to work, "break down the walls", and we will win", – says Rozvadovskaya.
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