Ukraine has unveiled an exciting new platform celebrating the nation’s rich cinematic heritage. For just two euros, film enthusiasts can immerse themselves in the works of Ukraine’s most iconic directors, spanning from the Soviet era to modern-day masterpieces. The platform, accessible here, offers a gateway to this vibrant cultural treasure.
Dovzhenko.Online, a much-anticipated online cinema rooted in the rich collection of the Dovzhenko Film Studio, has recently made its debut. This ever-evolving platform grants audiences access to a remarkable array of Ukrainian cinema, from revered classics to hidden gems. In addition to feature films, documentaries, and animated works, the site offers lecture programmes and archival interviews that delve into the context and complexities of Ukrainian filmmaking.
The platform boasts a diverse collection of films available to viewers worldwide. Themes range from “Ukrainian Comedy” and “Historical Documents” to “Ukrainian Poetic Cinema,” “Oleksandr Dovzhenko: Rediscovery,” “Ivan Kavaleridze: Core Principles,” “VUFKU: Ukrainian Hollywood,” and beyond. Each feature film is available to stream for 85 UAH (approximately €2).
To honour the centenary of the legendary filmmaker Serhiy Parajanov, the Dovzhenko Centre is offering a fascinating glimpse into his early Ukrainian works. The curated collection features a diverse range of creations, from television documentaries to an intriguing project Parajanov completed in place of a suspended colleague. It also includes experimental film studies for an ambitious yet unrealised vision of Kyiv. Parajanov is celebrated internationally, particularly in France, for his 1965 masterpiece Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors, an evocative adaptation of Mykhailo Kotsiubynsky’s novella. When the film premiered in France in March 1966, Lettres françaises published an extensive feature in which Parajanov shared his reflections on his time at the Dovzhenko Studio.
For those eager to explore the depth of Ukraine’s cinematic legacy, Dovzhenko.Online presents the Top 100 Ukrainian Films. Curated through an extensive survey of film critics and released in 2021, this list stands as the first concerted effort to chart the country’s rich film history. It’s not simply a ranking but a tribute to the stories, artistry, and creative vision that have shaped Ukrainian cinema over the years. This selection invites cinephiles to discover the diverse and often overlooked gems of Ukraine’s film industry.
The Oleksandr Dovzhenko National Centre stands as Ukraine’s largest and most significant film archive. Its vast collection includes more than 7,000 titles, spanning feature films, documentaries, and animated works from Ukraine and beyond. The archive also safeguards thousands of historical documents that chronicle the rich history of Ukrainian cinema.
Established in 1994, the Centre was built on the foundation of Ukraine’s largest Soviet-era film-copying facility, originally founded in 1938. Today, it serves as a multifaceted institution, housing a film repository, the country’s only film-copying laboratory, a cinema museum, a paper film archive, a media library, and a publishing house. The Centre’s core mission is to preserve, celebrate, study, and share Ukraine’s cinematic heritage, ensuring its impact is felt both at home and internationally.
