Kyiv Critics’ Week x NL
May 9 – May 11: the best of Ukrainian cinema
From May 9 till May 11, Kyiv Critics’ Week x NL showcases the best of Ukrainian cinema, selected and presented by Ukrainian film critics Daria Badior, Hanna Datsiuk and Serhii Ksaverov.
Since February 2022, when Russia launched its full scale invasion of Ukraine, more than 6 million Ukrainians have been forced to leave their homes. This is a continuation of a long history of emigration driven by conflict, economic hardship, and political instability. A history that has deeply influenced Ukrainian cinema, infusing its narratives with questions of identity, exile, and hope.
Revolving around the theme ‘Away From Home’, KCW x NL2025 presents five feature-length and three short films, exploring the topic of emigration in different ways.
About Kyiv Critics Week x NL
Kyiv Critics’ Week is one of Ukraine’s most prominent film festivals. De Balie initiated a collaboration with Kyiv Critics’ Week to bring hidden gems from the past as well as the latest highlights of Ukrainian cinema to Amsterdam.
The screenings are each followed by a discussion in which a Ukrainian and a Dutch film critics participate. They offer different perspectives on the film and provide a meeting point for two cultures that have increasingly interacted in recent years.
This year the project is expanding beyond Amsterdam, with the goal to include broader Dutch audiences and Ukrainian diaspora from different cities.
Kyiv Critics Week x NL is made possible with the support of Steunfonds Oekraïense makers, Stichting Droom en Daad, Gemeente Rotterdam, Ukrainian Institute and Embassy of Ukraine.
Kyiv Critics’ Week programmes
A strong wind sweeps Orest, the son of a Ukrainian emigrant, back to his village and separates him from his beloved. Determined to reunite, he embarks on a journey through extraordinary events. Set at the turn of the 20th century and blurring the line between dreams and reality, Fuchzhou takes place in locations ranging from
Kyiv Critics’ Week presents three Ukrainian shorts. Three films about belonging, family and crisis. Black Mountain Ukraine, 2016, 18′, Taras Dron12-year-old Yurko lives in a remote mountain village with his mother, as his father went to work in Poland. Yurko’s struggle to keep his father’s truck turns into a story of premature coming-of-age. Black Mountain
In the no man’s land situated in the heart of the conflict between Russian and Ukrainian forces, longtime neighbors take in soldiers from both sides. As war grinds on and resources become scarce, they recognize that isolation is no longer an option. The world premiere of Grey Bees took place at the IFFR in 2024,
U Are the Universe is a love story unlike any other – after Earth explodes, a lonely Ukrainian space trucker Andriy believes he is the only survivor until a French scientist Catherine appears on the radio. Despite all the obstacles, Andriy decides to meet her. U Are the Universe as seen by Ukrainian critic Serhii
Stone Cross is a hidden gem of Ukrainian poetic cinema. Set in the 19th century, it follows the story of a Ukrainian peasant who leaves his ancestral home to seek a better life in Canada. Before departing, he erects a stone cross to mark the end of his life in his homeland. Stone Cross as
Fragments of Ice is a documentary essay woven from a rare family VHS archive of a Soviet Ukrainian Ballet on Ice star, contrasting the utopian vision of the West with the oppressive Soviet reality. Before the screening there will be a live performance by the Ukrainian International Ballet. Fragments of Ice as seen by Ukrainian
