UKRAINE NOMINATES POST-WAR DRAMA ‘ATLANTIS’ FOR OSCARS
Toma Istomina.
The Ukrainian Oscar Committee announced it had decided to submit the picture for the Best International Feature Film category on September 24, 2020. “We are incredibly happy that the Ukrainian Oscar Committee has chosen our film among the worthy contenders,” the team behind “Atlantis” wrote on Facebook.
The academy members will consider the Ukrainian nominee among other feature-length contenders produced outside of the United States. The academy will announce the short list on March 15 ahead of the April 25 ceremony, the latest Oscars date since 1953. The date was picked to match the delayed film premieres amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
A creation of filmmaker Valentyn Vasyanovych, “Atlantis” takes viewers to the fantasized future of ruined Donbas after Ukraine wins the war against Russia. The film portrays the devastation of war through the life of a former soldier, who suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and struggles to adapt to the new reality in the Donbas, the territory that has been declared uninhabitable. As he almost loses hope, the soldier befriends a volunteer and sees a chance for a better future. Vasyanovych has served as the director, screenwriter, cameraman and co-producer for “Atlantis.”
This is the second time the filmmaker’s picture is nominated for Oscars from Ukraine. His previous work, drama “Black Level” was selected by the committee in 2017 but didn’t make it to the short list. The cast of “Atlantis” largely consisted of amateur actors, including a former soldier, paramedic and volunteer. It was partially funded by Ukraine’s State Film Agency. The drama premiered at the 76th Venice International Film Festival in September 2019, where it earned the first for Ukraine victory in the Horizons section.
According to the Ukrainian Oscar Committee, since then, the film was screened at 50 international festivals allocating four Grand Prix statuettes at four of them. Its most recent recognition is the selection for the long list of best feature-length films at this year’s European Film Awards. The Ukrainian Oscar Committee says that the HBO Europe streaming service, as well as film distributors of three European countries, have already bought rights to screen the film.
“Atlantis” will hit Ukrainian cinemas on November 5, 2020.
Ukraine’s previous nominees for Oscars include Nariman Aliev’s “Homeward,” a drama about the tragedy of a Crimean Tatar family, Sergei Loznitsa’s “Donbass,” a drama about the consequences of Russia’s war in eastern Ukraine.
