by Maciek Hamela
EnglishEnglish
German
"Such beautiful buildings... not bombed at all," says a young girl admiring a pristine part of her homeland as she passes through. She is one of more than 400 passengers that have taken a seat in Maciek Hamela's VW minibus. The documentary filmmaker helps Ukrainian children, women and elderly people cross the border into Poland to flee the Russian army. Silently observing, the camera captures the journey's events. While the war itself is not depicted visually, it is the drawn faces of the people involved, their stories and their tragic fates that express the misery. Nevertheless, sparks of hope keep leaping from this moving odyssey of survival.
Maciek Hamela is a film and radio producer, as well as a director and screenwriter. He was born in Warsaw, Poland, and holds a master's degree in French literature from the Sorbonne University in Paris. He went on to graduate with a degree in film directing from the École Internationale de Création Audiovisuelle et de Réalisation (EICAR). Hamela is a long-term collaborator with the BBC Channels. His documentary short film BLESS YOU won the Doc Alliance Award. 2023 In the Rearview 2020 Bless You (short film) 2011 Bonne Chance (short film)
