President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy held a video call with the director of the documentary "20 Days in Mariupol" Mstyslav Chernov.
The Head of State congratulated him on receiving the Directors Guild of America Award, the BAFTA award and the nomination for this year's Oscar.
"Great job! Please convey our congratulations to the team. This is a great success. I want to thank you for doing a great job for Ukraine. This is important today, as the focus is shifting from Ukraine to other topics. Somewhere there are challenges, tragedies, and somewhere the enemy is simply fighting against us. And when there is such a defocus, you help a lot to bring people back to reality and to the truth," the President said.
According to him, the more prominent the work of a Ukrainian filmmaker is in the world, the more people will hear about Ukraine.
"Your work is evaluated by professional people. The most important thing is the assessment of people. When I have the opportunity, I will be happy to watch your film," Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.
The President wished Mstyslav Chernov to win the Oscar.
"I wish you to win, every victory is important for us. You know that every victory brings our great victory closer. Congratulations on a solid creative Ukrainian result!" the Head of State said.
Mstyslav Chernov, for his part, recalled that two years ago he was part of a film crew that recorded an interview with the President and told him that he was working on a movie about the tragedy in Mariupol.
"I kept my word and made the film," he said.
Mstyslav Chernov noted that he feels the support of Ukrainian society, and this is of great importance.
"This means that we are not alone. And I think this is what impresses the world the most. Even when the audience sees a tragedy, they see that Ukrainians never give up. They see that these tragedies form the national identity and unity of society," said the director.
In his opinion, the unity of Ukrainians inspires the world because it resonates in people's hearts.
Mstyslav Chernov also said that many Ukrainian filmmakers have gone to war, and many cannot find funding for their projects.
He also emphasized the importance of the government listening to the film community, because it is a strong voice for Ukraine.
"Cinematography not only shapes the world's understanding of what is happening in Ukraine now, it will also shape history in the future. Because history is not what happened, but what we remember. And we remember a lot thanks to cinematography. Ukrainian filmmakers write Ukrainian history," the director emphasized.
In February 2024, Mstyslav Chernov received the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Documentaries. His film "20 Days in Mariupol" won the BAFTA Award for Best Documentary. The film has also been nominated for the 2024 Oscar in the Best Documentary Feature category.