Film Screening followed by Q&A with its director and two protagonists. Because of their love for Ukraine, three Ukrainian women fell victim of the Russian aggression and ended up in captivity by the Russian backed militants. This unsettling documentary tells the story of their courage and stoicism.
Runtime: 32 min
Director: Olha Volynska
Genres: Documentary
Language: Russian
Subtitles: English
The documentary “Unbroken women” tells the story of women arrested and tortured by Russian controlled paramilitary groups. The film consists of three episodes featuring the stories of three female Ukrainian former prisoners, who were both volunteers and civil activists.
The purpose of this project is to increase awareness of human rights violations during the armed conflicts in Ukraine, in particular, with respect to civilian POWs. The film aims to reduce stigma surrounding POWs to ensure they are aware of their rights and to build support among the public and at the state level.
The main protagonists experienced extreme torture in captivity, but did not break. Today they continue to help veterans, former prisoners, internally displaced persons and current hostages. Also they testify in international courts about the war crimes in Ukraine. More than 3 thousand former prisoners who, like these three women, need official status and medical and legal assistance from the state.
The film was shot and produced with the support of the “Human right protecting group “Sich” NGO, the New Media Advocacy Project (NYC), International Partnership for Human Rights (IPHR) and Institute for War and Peace Reporting (IWPR).
Q&A session
After the screening, the film director and a script writer Olha Volynska will be presenting her insight into the fate of Ukrainians kept in captivity in the Russian occupied Donbas. Olha is a journalist and documentary filmmaker from the “Human right protecting group “Sich” NGO.
The audience will also have a rare opportunity to meet Irina Dovgan’, one of the protagonists featured in the film, who will share her experience of being imprisoned and tortured by Russian controlled paramilitary groups.
