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Last week, the leader of the infamous Wagner mercenary group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, went on an unhinged public rant criticizing Russia’s war effort, shocking Kremlin watchers and revealing how the conflict is sowing division in Putin’s ranks. On May 5, Prigozhin unleashed a torrent of invective against Russian leadership targeting the current architects of Ukrainian campaign — underscoring that the war has reached an inflection point. It marked the first time in Putin’s presidency one of his inner circle has criticized his leadership.

Prigozhin, dubbed “Putin’s cook” for getting...

”Stop all communication with directors who continue to live in the Soviet or Soviet paradigm” urge the filmmakers in a statement.

As the Russian invasion of Ukraine reaches its 12th day, seven Ukranian filmmakers have issued the below statement, with an important message for the rest of the world: ”Stop any cultural collaborations with representatives of a terrorist country that threatens to destroy the whole world.”

Valentyn Vasyanovych, Roman Bondarchuk, Nariman Aliev, Maryna Er Gorbach, Darya Bassel, Antonio Lukich and Alina Gorlova have all contributed. It is understood that all of the filmmakers have remained in Ukraine, apart from Er Gorbach,...

Seven Ukrainian filmmakers, who are remaining in the country as Russia continues its invasion, have spoken out about their experiences on the front line of the war in their country. Directors Valentyn Vasyanovych, Roman Bondarchuk, Nariman Aliev, Maryna Er Gorbach , Antonio Lukich, Alina Gorlova and producer Darya Bassel have all called upon the international film and television community to issue cultural sanctions against Russia.

“It is necessary to lower the iron cultural curtain around Russia,” Vasyanovych says in a statement sent to Deadline. “Stop any cultural collaborations with representatives of a terrorist country that threatens to destroy the whole world.”

The group of filmmakers ask the world to isolate Russia and its president Vladimir Putin as the Russo-Ukranian war intensifies and the number of civilian casualties continues to rise dramatically.

Read their moving and deeply entrenched statements here:

Valentyn Vasyanovych

Ukrainian film director

Insidious shelling of residential areas with civilians,...

As the invasion of Ukraine continues, seven leading Ukrainian filmmakers allege complicity by the Russian artistic community. They are now calling for cultural sanctions against Russia.

Valentyn Vasyanovych, director

Insidious shelling of residential areas with civilians, as well as blackmail of nuclear weapons – is a manifestation of the powerless rage of the fascist regime of Russia and the lack of chances to defeat the Ukrainian army and people in a direct military confrontation.

The whole bloody history of Russia, as imperial, Soviet, and post-Soviet, is based on the bloodthirsty attitude towards its neighbors and its people, who have never been united ethnically or culturally.

What is culture for here? To the fact that at all times Russia has used cultural and artistic achievements as a cover for its aggressive actions, forming the idea that a country with great cultural achievements can not behave like a bloodthirsty cannibal. But history has shown that it can.