Ukrainian directors Chernov, Loznitsa invited to US Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

Ukrainian directors Mstyslav Chernov and Serhii Loznitsa were invited to the U.S. Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on June 25.

Chernov and Loznitsa were among 487 new members invited to join the more than 10,000-strong body that votes on the annual Oscar winners of the Academy Awards.

Chernov's documentary film, "20 Days in Mariupol," won the Oscar for Best Documentary at the 96th Academy Awards in March 2024.

The documentary records the Russian siege of Mariupol in Donetsk Oblast from the perspective of Chernov and his crew during the first weeks of the full-scale invasion. It was the first Ukrainian film made by a Ukrainian director to ever win an Oscar.

Loznitsa, who is of Belarusian origin but moved to Kyiv as a child, has been making films since 2000. He has primarily focused on documentary works, but also has made five feature films, including the award-winning 2018 movie "Donbass" (the title uses the Russian spelling of the region's name).

‘20 Days in Mariupol’ can win an Oscar. Will it make the world care about Russian war crimes in Ukraine?

Editor’s Note: This story contains descriptions of graphic scenes. “My brain will desperately want to forget all this,” narrates journalist Mstyslav Chernov over footage he filmed of city workers adding bodies to a mass grave in Mariupol, “but the camera will not let it happen.” At the start of

The Kyiv IndependentKate Tsurkan