May 20, 2016

Now showing: Toronto filmmaker’s “Holodomor: Voices of Survivors”

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Ariadna Ochrymovych

TORONTO – Ariadna Ochrymovych, an independent film producer/director/writer and educator based in Toronto, has made several documentary films, the latest of which is “Holodomor: Voices of Survivors.” She interviewed over 100 Holodomor survivors across Canada – in every major city. The film was made under the auspices and with the cooperation of the Ukrainian Canadian Research and Documentation Center (UCRDC).

One version of the film was cut to a 30-minute length so that it could be used in schools as part of part of the “Holodomor National Awareness Tour,”  which consists of a mobile bus outfitted with electronic equipment to show a digital narrative on the Holodomor. The bus travels around Ontario schools (the plan is to send it throughout Canada) as a mobile lesson for high school students on the Holodomor.

“Holodomor: Voices of Survivors” won an award at the Peace on Earth Film Festival in Chicago and a nomination for best documentary at the Female Eye Film Festival in Toronto. It premiered in West Chester, Pa., was broadcast on Ukrainian National TV, and has screened at festivals in Paris, Los Angeles, Bellingham, Wash., and Jasper, Alberta. Most recently, the film was shown at the Freethought Film Festival in Orlando, Fla.

“Holodomor: Voices of Survivors” will be screened at the Yorkton Film Festival (where it is nominated for the Research Award) in Saskatchewan on May 28, and at the International Short Film Festival, in Selby, the United Kingdom, on July 30. The film is currently screening in the Holodomor Memorial Museum in Kyiv.

This year, the Ukrainian Genocide Famine Foundation-U.S.A. took part in the organization of the annual international film festival Peace on Earth, which took place on March 3-6 in the Chicago Cultural Center. The goal of the festival was to disseminate the work of independent film directors on the subjects of peace, social justice and the battle against aggression. Among the films shown were Ms. Ochrymovych’s ”Holodomor: Voices of Survivors.” Members of the foundation worked on developing materials for teachers on the topic of the Holodomor, some of which can be found on the website http://www.ukrainiangenocide.org.

A 15-minute version of Ms. Ochrymo-vych’s film may be viewed at vimeo.com/148047499; short clips of interviews with Holodomor survivors are available at holodomorsurvivors.ca.

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