An Exclusive Trailer for Valentyn Vasyanovych’s To the Victory! Envisions a Future Ukraine.

      Ukrainian director Valentyn Vasyanovych, who first caught our attention with his striking and formally innovative film Atlantis, has returned with his latest work, To the Victory!, which had its world premiere in the Platform section at the 50th Toronto International Film Festival yesterday. Envisioning the future of his country in the aftermath of war, we are excited to exclusively present the first trailer for the film, featuring performances by Vasyanovych, Vladlen Odudenko, Misha Lubarsky, Sergii Stepanskyy, Volodymyr Yatsenko, Marianna Novikova, and Hryhoriy Naumov.

      The TIFF synopsis reads: “Set in Ukraine's post-war future, Roman (Valentyn Vasyanovych), a struggling film director, aspires to create films again. He lives in Kyiv with his 18-year-old son (Hryhoriy Naumov), while his cherished wife (Marianna Novikova) and young daughter are in Vienna, the city they escaped to at the onset of Russia’s illegal full-scale invasion. Despite the election of a new populist government and his determination to remain in the country he fought for, Roman is increasingly frustrated as his family has no plans to return home due to the dire economic and political conditions. These circumstances, despite signs of liberation and citizen advocacy, are slow to change. As he begins to develop a new film with his reliable producer Volodymyr Yatsenko (who is the genuine producer of the film), his close friend Vlad (Vladlen Odudenko) becomes a somber reflection of his own future: he has already lost his family to the temptations of the West. Additionally, Roman’s sick father (Volodymyr Kuznetsov), shaped by his experiences, offers a different perspective on life.”

      Watch the trailer premiere below.