Slovo House documentary debuts in English in Europe, Canada, and USA, highlighting Ukrainian Executed Renaissance
The "Remember the Past – Fight for the Future" project will feature film screenings, with Natalka Tsmots, the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Canada to Ukraine, serving as the film's ambassador.
The film team reports this.
The English-language version of the Ukrainian full-length documentary "' Slovo' House," directed by Taras Tomenko and produced by Fresh Production Group with support from the State Film Agency, will be released in Ukraine on March 20.
The film "' Slovo' House" explores one of the most significant crimes committed by the Soviet regime: the dismantling of a vibrant art movement that flourished in Kharkiv during the 1920s and 30s. In the "Slovo" building, 66 apartments housed some of the most renowned figures in Ukrainian culture, including writers, poets, artists, and directors. Over several years, this gathered intelligentsia faced repression, execution, or coercion into serving as propagandists for the party.
On February 13, a private film screening in Kyiv initiated the film's creative team's international project, "Remember the Past – Fight for the Future," to safeguard Ukrainian culture from destruction. The documentary "' Slovo' House" will serve as a tool for discussing Russia's systematic destruction of Ukrainian culture, a process ongoing for centuries. This project will feature a series of international meetings, showcasing the film and highlighting other Ukrainian artists who, through their work, protect and promote Ukrainian culture globally.
The film's premieres and accompanying meetings with the crew will take place in the UK, Austria, Germany, Estonia, Canada, France, and the USA. The film will be presented in English with Ukrainian subtitles. Closed screenings will invite representatives from the political and business sectors, diplomats, cultural figures, educators, and university professors, all of whom will help advance the project's objectives and disseminate its key messages.
Natalka Tsmots, the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Canada to Ukraine, has been involved with Ukraine's national scout organization, "Plast," since childhood. She played a key role in developing Ukraine's first security program following the Russian invasion in 2014. Her grandfather, the legendary Kost' Tsmots, known by the nickname "Modest," conducted special operations to liberate Ukrainian underground fighters from Gestapo prisons.
"I am deeply honored to serve as an ambassador for the documentary film "' Slovo' House." To me, this film is more than just a cinematic work; it is an echo from the past, a stark warning of the consequences when a society loses its freedom of speech. It cautions governments against using artists as mouthpieces for lies and propaganda and forcing them to become regime tools. This film delivers a message that resonates with anyone who has ever faced repression or the suppression of their language," Natalka Tsmots says.
In the photo – Natalka Tsmots, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Canada to Ukraine
The project's first event was held in Kyiv under the patronage and support of the Ministry of Culture and Strategic Communications of Ukraine, the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Ukraine's Integration into the European Union, and the State Agency of Ukraine for Cinema (Derzhkino). The initiators and organizers of the event were the production company Fresh Production Group.
Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze, Head of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Ukraine's Integration into the EU, delivered a speech:
"Throughout the 20th century, Ukraine faced an unequal struggle for freedom, during which Russia often managed to maintain global sympathies. A key reason for this was the world's limited understanding of Ukraine and the lack of truth shared abroad. Now, as the world observes a real-time battle between good and evil, there would be even greater international empathy if people were aware not only of the current war but also of the Kremlin's historical crimes. The story of the Executed Renaissance is not just a Ukrainian tragedy; it illustrates how Moscow impoverished the world, robbing and tainting the soul of humanity as a whole."
The film's producers and the project's ideological inspiration are Oleh Shcherbyna and Yuliia Cherniavska.
"Cinema serves as our weapon. Today, we focus on culture, history, and identity—elements that define Ukraine as a nation. Ukrainian culture has been under threat of destruction by Russia for over a century, a systematic and ongoing process. This is why our voice needs to be heard beyond Kyiv. We are inaugurating a series of international meetings to discuss, showcase, and take action—working together to find common solutions and create new initiatives to preserve and develop Ukrainian culture," the film's co-producer, Yuliia Cherniavska, said.
In the photo – Yuliia Cherniavska, co-producer of the film
The limited English-language release of the documentary "'Slovo' House" is set for March 20 in Ukraine. Audiences in Kyiv, Zhytomyr, Ivano-Frankivsk, Lutsk, and Chernivtsi can view the film.
The Berehynia Charitable Foundation, led by its founder Nadiia Vovk, will partner in organizing global screenings of the film "'Slovo' House." The foundation actively supports the film team in all their cultural initiatives.
