Starting July 9, a retrospective of films by Italian director Paolo Sorrentino, titled “Sorrentino’s Summer,” will begin at select movie theaters across Ukraine.
As part of the program, three films by one of the most famous contemporary Italian directors will be shown on the big screen once again: “The Great Beauty,” “Youth,” and “The Grace.”
“The Great Beauty” is one of Sorrentino’s most famous works. It was this film that earned the director an Oscar and a Golden Globe for Best International Feature Film.
The program also includes “Youth”—the director’s second English-language film, starring Michael Caine, Harvey Keitel, Rachel Weisz, Paul Dano, and Jane Fonda.
The third film in the retrospective will be *Grace*—the opening film of the Venice International Film Festival, which had its world premiere in the main competition.
Screenings will take place July 9–12 at select theaters across Ukraine. The program was initiated by the Italian Cultural Institute in Ukraine, the Italian Embassy in Ukraine, and the film company “Arthouse Traffic.”
Paolo Sorrentino is an Italian director and screenwriter, one of the most recognizable figures in contemporary European cinema. His works are distinguished by their visual sophistication and focus on themes of memory, aging, beauty, loneliness, power, and the search for the meaning of life. Among the director’s most famous films are “The Great Beauty,” “Youth,” “The Hand of God,” “The Wonder,” “The Consequences of Love,” and “Il Divo.”
Arthouse Traffic, FILM, ITALY, retrospective, Паоло Соррентіно
The State Film Agency of Ukraine has selected 404 out of 449 submissions for feature films and TV series to advance to the next stage of the “Tysyachovesna” cultural support program competition.
The application period for the “Tysyachovesna” program ended on June 4. A total of 449 applications were submitted in the “Feature Films and TV Series” category.
Following a technical screening, the State Film Agency published a list of 404 participants admitted to the second stage of the artistic competition.
“In addition, in accordance with the requirements of the Regulations, a random draw was conducted to assign projects to the experts on the competition commission for expert evaluation during the second stage of the artistic competition,” the Agency’s statement reads.
The expert evaluation will continue until July 28. It is at this stage that a comprehensive professional evaluation of the submitted projects will be conducted by more than 180 experts, whose list has been approved by the government.
Each project will be evaluated by five independent experts based on ten criteria, including: the project’s relevance to the competition’s theme; the budget’s alignment with the creative concept; the professionalism of the team; the potential to engage the audience; artistic and content value; originality of the idea; social significance and potential impact; inclusivity, accessibility, and diversity; feasibility of implementation; and the team’s experience in implementing similar projects.
Based on the evaluation results, a list of participants will be compiled who will proceed to the next stage of the competition—the pitching session. The final pitching sessions, held in a festival format, will take place from August 12 to 16. Participants will present their projects to experts and competition committees, who will determine the program’s winners.
Estimated funding by category: feature films and series—1.9 billion UAH; non-fiction (documentary) films and series—240 million UAH; animated films and series, as well as films and series for children—490 million UAH; contemporary music – 300 million UAH; performing arts – 400 million UAH; visual arts – 300 million UAH; audiovisual shows and videos for social media – 260 million UAH.
As previously reported, on April 3, the Ministry of Culture launched the call for proposals under the initiative to create Ukrainian cultural products (formerly “1,000 Hours of Ukrainian Content,” now “Tysiachovesna”). The application period ran through June 4, and the final project pitching will take place August 12–16.
The 2026 state budget allocates 4 billion hryvnias for the implementation of this program. According to Deputy Prime Minister for Humanitarian Policy and Minister of Culture of Ukraine Tetiana Berezhna, this year a maximum of 80% of the 4 billion hryvnias—that is, 3.2 billion hryvnias—will be allocated to the “Tysyachovesna” program.
Berezhna also reported that the ministry will propose allocating funds for the “Tysyachovesna” program in the 2027 state budget. She added that next year, the project is planned to be expanded to include books and online games.
According to the Interfax-Ukraine Culture project, a star-studded screening of the cult comedy “Monty Python and the Holy Grail” in Ukrainian dubbing took place at the Zhovten Cinema in Kyiv, the press service reports.
“The film has taken on a new sound thanks to Ukrainian comedians who adapted the humor for modern audiences,” the organizers of the screening noted.
The film, which celebrated its 50th anniversary last year, will be released in Ukrainian theaters on April 30 at the initiative of comedian Vasyl Baidak in collaboration with distributor “Arthouse Traffic.”
“Monty Python and the Holy Grail” is the debut feature film by the British comedy troupe “Monty Python,” released in 1975 and considered one of the most influential comedies in film history. The film’s plot is an ironic take on the legends of King Arthur, who, along with the Knights of the Round Table, sets out in search of the Holy Grail, encountering a series of absurd and unpredictable situations.
The film was directed by Terry Gilliam and Terry Jones. At the time, well-known musicians, including Elton John, as well as members of Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, and Genesis, contributed to the project’s funding.
The Ukrainian dub was created with the participation of representatives of the contemporary comedy scene. Specifically, the characters were voiced by Vasyl Baidak, Oleg Svisch, Danylo Povar, Mark Kutsevalov, Roman Mishcheryakov, as well as comedians Dasha Kubik, Lana Chubakha, Natalia Garipova, and other project participants.
As noted, the adaptation aims to make classic British humor more accessible to Ukrainian audiences and make the film relevant for modern viewers.
The film “Monty Python and the Holy Grail” is considered a classic of absurd comedy and one of the key works of British cinema that has influenced the development of humor worldwide.
https://interfax.com.ua/news/culture/1165064.html
The Oscar cinema in the Gulliver shopping center in the capital hosted a pre-premiere screening of the new film by cult American director Jim Jarmusch, Father Mother Sister Brother, ahead of its wide release in Ukraine, Olga Levkun, a journalist from the Culture Department of the Interfax-Ukraine agency, reports from the scene.
The film is a comedy-drama structured as three novellas that explore the complex relationships between loved ones—parents and children, brothers and sisters—as well as themes of family memory, alienation, and the search for emotional intimacy. The film combines Jarmusch’s trademark irony with intimate psychological drama and the director’s signature aesthetic.
The film features world-renowned actors, including Cate Blanchett, Adam Driver, Charlotte Rampling, Vicky Krieps, Tom Waits, Mayim Bialik, Sarah Green, India Moore, and Luca Sabbat.
The film had its world premiere at the Venice International Film Festival, where it won the top prize, the Golden Lion. After the festival screening, the film received widespread international acclaim and positive reviews from critics, who praised Jarmusch’s direction, the actors’ performances, and the screenplay structure.
The pre-premiere screening in Kyiv took place on the eve of the film’s Ukrainian release and brought together representatives of the cultural community, the film industry, and the media.
According to reports, the film will be released in Ukraine on February 26.
Jim Jarmusch is one of the most influential directors in American independent cinema, the author of cult films such as Dead Man, Paterson, Broken Flowers, Only Lovers Left Alive, and others. His works have repeatedly received awards at Cannes, Venice, and other international film festivals.
11-year-old Ukrainian Roman Oleksiv, who survived a Russian missile strike on Vinnytsia in 2022, received the international Cinema for Peace Honorary Dove award during the Berlin International Film Festival (Berlinale), Roman and his father Yaroslav announced on Facebook.
“This award is not just about Roman. It is about all Ukrainian children who grow up to the sound of sirens,” said the boy’s father.
Roman received the award at the Cinema for Peace charity event for the documentary film Children in the Fire by director Yevgeny Afineevsky, which tells his story. The event takes place annually during the Berlinale and is dedicated to global conflicts and humanitarian crises.
Roman suffered severe injuries during a Russian missile strike on Vinnytsia, which killed his mother. The boy underwent dozens of operations and lengthy rehabilitation, but managed to return to his studies, creative work, and public activities, becoming a symbol of the resilience of Ukrainian children.
Roman has previously spoken at the European Parliament and received awards in Ukraine for his courage and strength of spirit.
The Directors Guild of America (DGA) recognized the documentary film “2000 Meters to Andriivka” by Ukrainian director and journalist Mstislav Chernov with its award, according to a post on the Facebook page of the Ukrainian State Film Agency on Sunday.
“The film chronicles the events of the war in Ukraine and focuses on the fighting during the Ukrainian counteroffensive. In the film, Mstislav Chernov and photographer Alexander Babenko follow Ukrainian soldiers, capturing the reality of life in the trenches, heavy fighting, and the personal stories of defenders on the front lines. The cameras convey the immediate experience of war — from tense combat episodes to personal moments,“ the statement said.
It is noted that this is Chernov’s second DGA award. The director previously received this award for the documentary film ”20 Days in Mariupol.”
“The Directors Guild of America Award is yet another confirmation of the international recognition of Ukrainian documentary cinema and the world community’s attention to the events of the war in Ukraine,” the State Film Agency noted.
