Mir vam

The Maidan revolution, the annexation of Crimea, and the ensuing civil war: after a period of relative serenity, the "big history" seems to have moved closer to Slovakia's borders again as these events are happening right in our own back yard and several reporters from Slovakia have brought invaluable testimony about them. A documentary road-movie from East Ukraine, shot by young photographer and cameraman Juraj Mravec, is an important report on the state of a country that has changed into a war zone. Interwoven with impressive black-and-white photographs and accompanied by a subjective daily-like narration, its storyline focuses primarily on the consequences of war. The fleeting portraits of Donbas residents are composed into a mosaic of ruin and fear but also of human vitality, ability to survive and rejoice over everyday things the war has not yet taken away from them – just like their faith in a better future. (IFF Bratislava)