Ukrainian director and journalist Mstyslav Chernov’s documentary 2,000 Meters to Andriivka received the F:ACT Award at Denmark’s CPH:DOX documentary film festival, organizers announced on March 29.
The jury praised the film as a powerful portrayal of war and a strong reflection on loss and resilience.
The documentary follows Ukraine’s 2023 counteroffensive, as Chernov embeds with a platoon from the 3rd Separate Assault Brigade. Their mission was to liberate Andriivka, a strategically important village in Donetsk Oblast. Surrounded by mines, the village is accessible only through a narrow stretch of forest, making the battle particularly grueling.
"Ultimately we give the F:ACT award to 2,000 Meters to Andriivka not just because it’s a conflict on our doorstep, but because it’s a masterpiece in filmmaking: a haunting, multi-layered portrayal of war comparable to All Quiet on the Western Front,” the jury stated.
“But this is not the First World War, it’s today. An artist amid bloodshed brings the reality home, and makes an anti-war film that forces us to reflect on the dignity of each human life lost."
Chernov, an acclaimed war correspondent and documentary filmmaker, worked on the project with Associated Press photographer Oleksandr Babienko. The film was produced by Michelle Misner and Rainey Aronson-Rath, both of whom won an Oscar for "20 Days in Mariupol."
His previous film, 20 Days in Mariupol, won the Oscar for Best Documentary at the 96th Academy Awards last March.
The film captures the Russian siege of Mariupol in the early weeks of the full-scale invasion, offering a firsthand account from Chernov and his team. It is the first Ukrainian-directed film to ever receive an Oscar.
Tim Zadorozhnyy
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