“2000 Meters to Andriivka: Mstislav Chernov's new film wins Best Director at Sundance
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A film about the ongoing war
A new documentary film by Ukrainian director Mstyslav Chernov, 2000 Meters to Andriivka, won the Best Director award in the International Documentary Competition at the Sundance Film Festival.
The film 2000 Meters to Andriivka takes viewers to the front line of the Russian-Ukrainian war, telling the story of the liberation of the village of Andriivka near Bakhmut by the 3rd Separate Assault Brigade. The filming took place during the Ukrainian Armed Forces' counteroffensive in 2023, when the military overcame the occupied territory meter by meter.
This is Chernov's second film about Russia's war against Ukraine, the first being 20 Days in Mariupol, which won an Oscar. The new film not only documents the fighting, but also reveals the personal stories of the soldiers, some of whom did not live to see the end of the shooting.
From a story of success to a story of loss
“The film changed in the process of creation,” says Mstyslav Chernov in an interview with the Associated Press. ”From a story about the success of the operation, it turned into a story of losses, memory, and the price that soldiers pay for every inch of land. And that's where the title came from.”
Chernov emphasizes that his work as a journalist and filmmaker has become a way to prevent the world from forgetting about Ukraine: “The more I saw that the situation was not changing, the more I wanted to go back and continue filming. And that's what I did.”
Surviving the war through documentary filmmaking
The film is a joint project of The Associated Press and PBS Frontline. According to the director, he sought to make the most realistic portrayal of modern warfare: “We tried to show the war in a way that no one has ever shown it before. The combination of journalism and cinema gives a unique immersive effect. The viewer must feel that he is there, at the front, with the soldiers.”
One of the most emotional scenes in the film, Collider writes, is when one of the soldiers admits that he continues to fight even in his dreams. “I never saw myself as a soldier and I never wanted to be one,” he tells Chernov, ”but that doesn't mean that when your country is at war, you have to refuse to become a soldier. I came to fight, not to serve. These are two different things.”
“It's not just numbers, it's life”
Mstyslav Chernov repeatedly shows moments when the soldiers, in between battles, talk about their dreams and plans for life after the war. One soldier jokes that after the victory he will smoke “within normal limits”. Another reminisces about his student life and jokes with Chernovyi because he studied at a hostile university. However, each of these characters falls victim to the war. They don't return home, they don't realize their dreams-their lives are cut short on the battlefield.
The success of 2000 Meters to Andriivka lies in its format: Chernov shows not just numbers and losses, but real human stories. The audience sees not statistics, but personalities who were ordinary people yesterday and became warriors today. He makes each character the center of a separate section of the film, allowing the audience to feel their struggle and tragedy. “Documentaries have the power to remind the world that war is not just about strategic decisions, it's about real people. They are not just numbers or positions on a map, they are living people who had a future,” Chernov concludes in a conversation with the Associated Press.
International recognition of Ukrainian documentaries
The premiere of 2000 Meters to Andriivka at Sundance was an important milestone in the international recognition of Ukrainian documentaries, where the voice of Ukrainians was heard again. At the same time, Mstislav Chernov never ceases to emphasize his responsibility to Ukraine. About his speech at the Oscars, he said: “I had hundreds of messages with advice on what to say on stage, but I knew that my main responsibility was to the Ukrainians, to Mariupol, to the soldiers I was filming.”
After the festival, the director plans to continue his work and present the film at other international film events.
Mstislav Chernov is a Ukrainian photographer, Associated Press journalist, filmmaker, war correspondent, president of the Ukrainian Association of Professional Photographers, honorary member of PEN Ukraine and writer. He has covered the Revolution of Dignity, the war in eastern Ukraine, the aftermath of the downing of Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777, the Syrian civil war, the battles of Mosul in Iraq, and the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, including the blockade of Mariupol. For this work, he received the Deutsche Welle Freedom of Speech Award, the Giorgi Gongadze Prize, the Knight International Journalism Awards, the Biagio Agnes Award, the Bayeux Calvados-Normandy Award, the Elijah Parish Lovejoy Award, and the Free Media Awards. In 2022, he was included in the ratings “People of NV 2022 in the Year of War” and “14 Songs, Photos and Art Objects that Became Symbols of Ukrainian Resistance” by Forbes Ukraine, and video footage from Mariupol became the basis for the film “20 Days in Mariupol,” which in 2024 was awarded an Oscar for the first time in the history of Ukrainian cinema.
Social networks of the photographer: Facebook Instagram
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