by Iryna Tsilyk
As the director’s clapperboard snaps shut, an explosion can be heard in the distance. Single mother Anna lives with her two daughters and two sons in the Ukrainian war zone Donbass. They are united by a common project: to make a film about what they experienced and still experience in their shattered hometown. Anna’s daughter Myroslava dreams of becoming a camerawoman and getting a scholarship. Together with her sister, she transforms their living room into a temporary studio or goes out onto the streets to interview soldiers in front of the camera. Director Iryna Tsilyk observes the brave family as they make their films and captures not only touching moments of hopelessness, but also of contagious joy.