Nominated for the best documentary function Oscar, “Porcelain War” is a poignant, enriching film about the power of creativity in conflict zones. The film traces the creation of lively ceramic figures by two dedicated artists in the country of Ukraine, who are now approaching its fourth year of warfare since Russia’s military invasion.
The directors Slava Leonyev and Brendan Bellomo, together with producer Paula Dupré Pesman, joined Thewrap’s editor -in -chief Sharon Waxman for a question and answer on Thursday evening in Los Angeles which was part of Our ongoing screening series.
In addition to co -director, Leontyev is also a topic for the documentary. An artist and former soldier from the Ukrainian special forces, he lives with his wife Anya Stasenko in a countryside outside Crimea. They both create beauty objects, such as the sensitive porcelain dicks that came to symbolize the fragility of life during war.
“From the beginning, (Anya and I) decided that we will never focus on destruction,” Leontyev said during the discussion. “We will never be focused on violence because it is pointless to get the audience extra news films. We will focus on personal experience and beauty. All devastation looked the same. All of these crumbled buildings looked the same. “
Leontyev pointed out the metaphors for nature and art – from dandelions to snails without shells – to tell a moving story about Ukraine’s struggle and resilience.
“We felt we were the eyes of our project, we were the people on the ground,” he said. “And we looked really attentive, because everything is so delicate during the war. And we filmed every flower, every huge forest or building or person. We filmed (it) all as if it were the last day of existence because everything is delicate and no one knows who will survive tomorrow. “
At the show, the filmmakers also took porcelain pieces, such as those shown in the documentary, for the audience to see:
When it comes to logistics to make a movie in Ukraine, Colorado-based co-director Bellomo treated the complex chain of zoom calls and networks that went into the pursuit.
“We started with the first of many challenges: How do you take a camera in a war zone?” Said Bellomo. “It’s not like you could just send something that is reliable right there right there to the front line. We discovered that there was a network of volunteers and it was actually a Makeup artist from New Jersey who stored duffle bags with medical supplies, 50, 60 at a time, 3,000 pounds. “
Bellomo used the makeup artist’s freight competence and also set up an “improvised film school” with Leonyev and the film’s film photographer Andrey Stefanov, also a member of Ukraine’s special forces.
“It was so that (Leontyev and Stefanov) could take their artistic instincts and translate them into cinema,” Bellomo said. “And during this time (Leontyev) and I would start sketching, and these sketches became storyboards and charts, ideas for pictures. We looked at paintings, sculptures and cinemas that we loved and we realized that we are fluent in the same language in visual art and so we had this very rich collaboration. “
Bellomo, who expresses the film’s message, added, “The opposite of war is not peace and calm, it is creativity. And when they choose to seek beauty, to be inspired by it and create more, it is an act of resistance to creative resistance. “
For the entire video, including the filmmakers’ wild story about acquiring music for the film’s soundtrack from Ukrainian people’s band Dakhabrakha, click here.
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