The film is an essay-style account of the war in Ukraine from the perspective of three generations of women. There are frequent video calls between Olga, her mother and her grandmother. Recordings of their conversations are interspersed with photos and videos from the family archive, and news reports and collective images that portrays Ukrainian history of the last century. Traveling fluidly through time, it connects the current violence in Donbas with the destruction there during the Second World War, as related by Chernykh’s grandmother. One of the projects selected last year at Last Stop Trieste, A Picture to Remember premiered in competition at IDFA 2023.
“One of my goals is not to show war directly but to speak with the viewer in a poetic and strong voice – about the scars that the war leaves on us and about its influence on our identification. We are all going to face loss in one way or another so having something to hold on to in these moments is crucial for the future.” (O. Chernykh)
Sceneggiatura, fotografia / Screenplay, Photography: Olga Chernykh
Montaggio / Editing: Kasia Boniecka
Musica / Music: Maryana Klochko
Suono / Sound: Serhii Avdieiev, Benedikt Schiefer
Produzione / Produced by: Real Pictures
Coproduzione / Co-produced by LuFilms, Tama Film Produktion
Distribuzione internazionale / World Sales: Stranger Films Sales
Olga Chernykh
Film director and cinematographer Olga Chernykh was born in 1990 in Donetsk, Ukraine. In 2017, she graduated with an MA from the Cinematography department of the Karpenko-Karyi University of Theatre, Film and Television in Kyiv. She has taken part in several international workshops and residency programs such as the ‘Aristotle Workshop’ in Romania, ‘Eurasiadoc’ in Kyiv and B2B Docs.
Selected filmography
2019 Hives of my Heart doc. cm / sf; The Flood That No One Saw doc, cm / sf 2020 Express Your Taste cm / sf 2023 Foto na pam’yat (A Picture to Remember) doc.
