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The 2024 Oscar are on the horizon and the Ukrainian film “20 Days in Mariupol” is one of the nominees. This is the second time that a Ukrainian film has competed for the statuette. Last year “A House Made of Splinters”, created in co-production with Kyiv, made it to the shortlist.
Last year's Oscar nominee played a key role in the establishment of the "Voices of Children" Charitable Foundation. Let's recall what the film is about and find out what happened to its characters.
The Plot of “A House Made of Splinters”
The documentary depicts the lives of various children who end up in the Lysychansk Center for Social and Psychological Rehabilitation of Children because of their parents' neglect, violence, or alcoholism. According to the director, Simone Lereng Wilmont, the institution brought together children whose homes had fallen apart, but together they formed a new home — a house of splinters.
The children's stay at the Rehabilitation Center is only temporary: if their parents don't mend their ways, the children will either be adopted, placed in a family-type children's home, or sent to an orphanage. The latter scares the children the most.
The war exacerbates personal tragedies. After the temporary military occupation in 2014, Lysychansk remained a front-line city with its residents living under the echoes of shelling.
Perhaps people can get used to anything. We heard explosions, but they were far away; therefore, we knew that there was a war nearby. Thus if there were explosions far away, we didn't pay attention. We got used to the ‘serene life’,
shared Olha Tronova, one of the educators and actress of the film.
shared Olha Tronova, one of the educators and actress of the film.
The story centers on Yeva, Sasha, Alina, and Kolia. While educators, social services, and the courts try to decide what to do with the children, they make friends, play, quarrel and get along again. They seem to be happy and not worried about the future at all. But the moment their faces appear in the frame, it is clear that these children are in great pain.
The Filming Process
The filming lasted more than two years — from April 2019 to October 2020. The process was intentionally prolonged with a specific purpose: to let the children and educators get used to the camera and the film crew. Olena Rozvadovska, a human rights activist, did a lot to ensure the most delicate interaction with the characters.
Ultimately, they managed to record 245 hours of footage, but the film covered only one and a half hours. The footage from the first six months was not included in the documentary at all.
It was during the production of “A House Made of Splinters” when Olena met Azad Safarov, the film's line producer and second unit director. In 2019, they founded the "Voices of Children" Charitable Foundation to address the issues depicted in the film and beyond.
How Did the Fate of the Characters of “A House Made of Splinters” unfold
The most resonant is Kolia's story. During one of the private screenings, he was spotted by a family who decided to take him into their care. Now he lives with his foster parents in Kyiv and has the opportunity to communicate with his brothers and sisters who were adopted by another family.
Alina also has a foster family, and Yeva was adopted by her uncle because her grandmother died. Sasha was evacuated abroad.
The educator Marharyta Burlutska moved to the Ternopil region, and her colleague Olha Tronova relocated to Kryvyi Rih. The women still reminisce about their trip to Los Angeles and the Oscar 2023 ceremony.
Their brainchild, the Lysychansk Center for Social and Psychological Rehabilitation of Children, was struck by a missile shortly after the large-scale invasion and evacuation of the children. Since July 2022, the city of Lysychansk has again been occupied by the Russian troops.
I am trying to work in another field, but my heart is with the children. I want to tell people that I am very happy to have had the opportunity to share a part of our lives. And I really hope that everything will work out as well as possible for the children,
Olha Tronova said.
Olha Tronova said.
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