Stolen Spring

short film

Director/DoP/Editor

Every Ukrainian will never forget what they did on February 24th 2022, the beginning of the full scale russian invasion. I myself was in Mexico City. The late night, reluctant to sleep I scrolled through instagram. That’s where I’ve seen footage of bombs falling on residential buildings in my native Ukraine.

The months to follow were the hardest in my life. Unable to get out of bed I quit my job, I couldn’t sleep as I didn’t know if my family members were alive. During the siege of Mariupol (which lasted for 2 months, 3 weeks and 5 days) and no outside communication with the city I could have only wonder. The thing that kept me afloat was making art, particularly working on the short film 'Stolen Spring. This film was made with cheap means of technology, yet it’s the most meaningful film in my career so far.

Concept: All film is a symbolic interpretation of a devastating tragedy of war. The girl portrayed in the film becomes a poignant emblem embodying Ukraine, while the hand represents an invader stealthily crossing foreign borders, shattering the prevailing peace. The girl’s act of tearing apart blooming flowers is an allegory of excitement for spring and nature’s rebirth being gone as it’s passing by unnoticeably.