Mstyslav Chernov’s film competed for awards in two nominations — Best Documentary and Best Film not in the English Language — at the BAFTA awards ceremony. ‘20 Days in Mariupol’ won the award for Best Documentary
In the category, ‘20 Days in Mariupol’ competed against Matthew Heineman’s ‘American Symphony’ about musician Jon Batiste, Madeleine Gavin’s ‘Beyond Utopia’ about South Korean human rights activist Seungeun Kim, who led missions to rescue refugees from North Korea, Davis Guggenheim’s ‘Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie’ and Chris Smith’s ‘Wham!’ about the history of the band of the same name.
The award for Documentary goes to 20 Days In Mariupol 👏@20DaysMariupol @Dogwoof #EEBAFTAs pic.twitter.com/TlRGwU0tfZ
— BAFTA (@BAFTA) February 18, 2024
While receiving the award, Mstyslav Chernov told the audience about the russian occupation of Avdiivka, which became known the day before the BAFTA ceremony.
‘The day before yesterday another Ukrainian city fell. russia has occupied Avdiivka. And many cities before that. So the story of Mariupol is the symbol of everything that happens and the symbol of struggle and faith. Thank you for empowering our voice and let’s just keep fighting’.
During the speech he thanked colleagues Evgeniy Maloletka and Vasilisa Stepanenko, with whom he was in the besieged city of Mariupol, as well as the teams of the film, the Associated Press and Frontline.
The team behind 20 Days In Mariupol collect the Documentary BAFTA #EEBAFTAs pic.twitter.com/sRDz3UWNHu
— BAFTA (@BAFTA) February 18, 2024
In the Best Film not in the English language category, ‘20 Days in Mariupol’ lost to British director Jonathan Glazer’s ‘The Zone of Interest’, winner of the Grand Prix (the second most important award) at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival. The film will be released in Ukrainian cinemas on February 22.
‘The Zone of Interest’ shows the ideal life of the family of Auschwitz commandant Rudolf Höss and his wife Hedwig during the war. The couple live near the concentration camp, build a dream house with a cozy garden, a swimming pool, try on jewelry and spend time reading fairy tales with their five young children, ignoring everything that happens outside their yard.
About ‘20 Days in Mariupol’
‘20 Days in Mariupol’ tells about the russian attack on the city on February 24, 2022, the bombing of residential neighborhoods and maternity hospital, the people who lived and worked under the blockade of the city and how Chernov, along with colleagues — photographer Evgeniy Maloletka and journalist Vasilisa Stepanenko —managed to escape from the city surrounded by russian occupiers.
Mstyslav Chernov made all the footage during his 20-day stay in Mariupol.
Read our interview: ‘The director of ‘20 Days in Mariupol’: We all accepted our deaths in a way’
In January, ‘20 Days in Mariupol’ was nominated for an Oscar in the Documentary Feature Film category. The award ceremony will be held on March 11.
