The Ukrainian documentary "Porcelain War" has been nominated for Best Documentary Feature at the 97th Academy Awards, the U.S. Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced on Jan. 23.

Directed by Brendan Bellomo and Slava Leontyev, the film tells the story of three Kharkiv artists who joined the Ukrainian army while continuing to create porcelain figurines as an act of cultural resistance during Russia's full-scale invasion.

The film premiered at the 2024 Sundance Independent Film Festival, where it won the Grand Prix in the documentary competition, and has since earned 45 awards and 31 nominations, including recognition from the U.S. Directors Guild Award.

This marks the second consecutive year a Ukrainian documentary has been nominated for an Oscar. In 2024, Ukrainian director Mstyslav Chernov's "20 Days in Mariupol" made history as the first Ukrainian film to win the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature.

The film, shot during the Russian siege of Mariupol, comprised 30 hours of raw footage documenting the city's destruction and the human suffering caused by the invasion.

To ban Tchaikovsky or not, that is the question

In 2022, Lithuania’s then-Culture Minister Simonas Kairys decided that performing Russian composer Pyotr Illyich Tchaikovsky’s classic ballet “The Nutcracker” was no longer an appropriate way to celebrate the Christmas season. Lithuania is a staunch supporter of Ukraine, and Kairys, believing that R…

The Kyiv IndependentIan Buruma