Ukraine Another day of war began on Monday, but also with the news that we had won the first Oscar in its history. On Sunday evening the precious statuette went to the documentary “20 Days in Mariupol”about the siege of the Ukrainian city by the Russian army in 2022, and this “demonstrates the truth about Russian terrorism,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Monday.
“More than two years ago, Russia brutally attacked Mariupol. ’20 Days in Mariupol’ is a film that shows the truth about Russian terrorism,” Zelensky said on Telegram.
The documentary was made by Ukrainian journalists That They work for the Associated Press agency. In recent weeks he had already won a series of international awards, including the Pulitzer and the Bafta.
His success is wild a wave of emotion on social networks.
“The first Oscar in history. And it is so important right now,” the head of the Ukrainian presidential administration, Andrii Iermak, said on the social network X. “The world has seen the truth about Russia’s crimes. Justice will win“He added.
The documentary shows the agony of this eastern Ukrainian city, which fell into the hands of Russian forces 86 days after the Russian invasion began on February 22, 2022. at the price of tens of thousands of deaths and almost total destruction.
AP journalists who spent three weeks in the besieged city They managed to survive and take their photos even though the Russian army was hunting them.
“I’m probably the first director on this stage to say that I would have preferred never to make this film, if in exchange Russia had not attacked Ukraine and occupied our cities,” said Mstyslav Chernov, its director, during the ceremony in Los Angeles.
A disturbing story
The documentary is a horrible story.
The “20 Days in Mariupol” Filmmaking Team — Chernov, photographer Evgeniy Maloletka and producer Vasilisa Stepanenko – arrived in that city just an hour before Russia began bombing it. Two weeks later, they were the last journalists from an international organization in the city, sending crucial dispatches on civilian casualties, the digging of mass graves, the bombing of a maternity hospital and the extent of the devastation.
The filmmaking team of “20 Days in Mariupol”, in Los Angeles. Photo: APThe film It was a joint effort between AP and the PBS program “Frontline.” The statuettes went to Chernov, producer and editor Michelle Mizner and producer Raney Aronson-Rath. The Oscar — and the nomination — were a first for both Chernov, an AP videographer, and the 178-year-old news organization. It was the third nomination and first Oscar win for “Frontline.”
Yermak thanked the entire team who worked on the film “for reminding the world that the war continues and this evil still exists”.
Ukraine’s human rights chief Dmytro Lubinets praised the documentary for showing “the truth to the whole world”.
“This awards ceremony is an opportunity to speak to millions of people. This is what the director of the film did when he mentioned it the occupation, prisoners of war, killings of Ukrainians by the Russians and illegal kidnappings of civilians,” wrote Lubinets on Telegram.
The Oscar comes as the war enters its third year and Ukraine runs out of ammunition and Russian forces They are moving deeper into the Donetsk region in the west and in the Kharkiv region in the north.
Source: Clarin
Mary Ortiz is a seasoned journalist with a passion for world events. As a writer for News Rebeat, she brings a fresh perspective to the latest global happenings and provides in-depth coverage that offers a deeper understanding of the world around us.