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The Kyiv Independent’s contributor Ignatius Ivlev-Yorke spent a day with a mobile team from the State Emergency Service in Nikopol in the south of Ukraine as they responded to relentless drone, artillery, and mortar strikes from Russian forces just across the Dnipro River. Nikopol is located across from the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in the city of Enerhodar.

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Ukrainian documentary 'Porcelain War' nominated for Oscar

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Ukrainian documentary 'Porcelain War' nominated for Oscar
Directors (L-R) Brendan Bellomo and Slava Leontyev hold the U.S. Grand Jury Prize: Documentary for their film Porcelain War during the 2024 Sundance Film Festival Awards at The Ray on Jan. 26, 2024 in Park City, Utah. (Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images)

The Ukrainian documentary "Porcelain War" has been nominated for Best Documentary Feature at the 97th Academy Awards, the U.S. Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced on Jan. 23.

Directed by Brendan Bellomo and Slava Leontyev, the film tells the story of three Kharkiv artists who joined the Ukrainian army while continuing to create porcelain figurines as an act of cultural resistance during Russia's full-scale invasion.

The film premiered at the 2024 Sundance Independent Film Festival, where it won the Grand Prix in the documentary competition, and has since earned 45 awards and 31 nominations, including recognition from the U.S. Directors Guild Award.

This marks the second consecutive year a Ukrainian documentary has been nominated for an Oscar. In 2024, Ukrainian director Mstyslav Chernov's "20 Days in Mariupol" made history as the first Ukrainian film to win the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature.

The film, shot during the Russian siege of Mariupol, comprised 30 hours of raw footage documenting the city's destruction and the human suffering caused by the invasion.

To ban Tchaikovsky or not, that is the question
In 2022, Lithuania’s then-Culture Minister Simonas Kairys decided that performing Russian composer Pyotr Illyich Tchaikovsky’s classic ballet “The Nutcracker” was no longer an appropriate way to celebrate the Christmas season. Lithuania is a staunch supporter of Ukraine, and Kairys, believing that R…
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Tim Zadorozhnyy

News Editor

Tim Zadorozhnyy is a news editor at The Kyiv Independent. Based in Warsaw, he is pursuing studies in International Relations, focusing on European Studies. Tim began his career at a local television channel in Odesa. After moving to Warsaw, he joined the Belarusian opposition media outlet NEXTA, starting as a news anchor and later advancing to the position of managing editor.

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