Film festival defends screening of Ukraine war documentary branded Russian propaganda

The film shows Russian troops drinking heavily, complaining about their ancient Soviet-era equipment, and sometimes questioning the point of the war. Other soldiers claim they are fighting Nazis and blame Ukraine for Russia’s decision to invade Ukraine’s Donbas region in 2014.

In a statement posted on the festival’s website, Marcolina and festival director Dudi Rokach said the decision to screen the film “was not made lightly”.

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“Aware of the controversy it has generated globally, we engaged in extensive discussions about the film’s content and the complexities it presents,” Marcolina and Rokach said.

“By portraying the experiences and voices of Russian soldiers, the film sheds light on the internal contradictions, disillusionment, and sense of purposelessness within the ranks of the aggressor.

“We feel it serves as an existential critique of war, exposing the mechanisms that sustain it and ultimately underscoring the urgency of ending Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.”

They added: “We trust in the intelligence and openness of our audience, believing that documentary can be a catalyst for social change by encouraging engagement with uncomfortable narratives.”

In a statement provided by festival organisers, Trofimova defended her documentary as an “anti-war film made at great risk to all involved, myself especially”.

“I unequivocally believe that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is unjustified, illegal and acknowledge the validity of the International Criminal Court investigation of war crimes in Ukraine,” Trofimova said.

“The suggestion that our film is propaganda is ludicrous given that I’m now at risk of criminal prosecution in Russia.”

Trofimova previously worked in Syria, Congo and Iraq, with much of her work appearing on the state-owned Russia Today network.

In a separate letter to festival organisers, Australian Federation of Ukrainian Organisations co-chair Kateryna Argyrou criticised the movie for humanising Russian soldiers while not mentioning Russian war crimes or criticising President Vladimir Putin’s regime.

Calling for all screenings of the film to be cancelled, Argyrou said the “movie presents not the ‘truth’ but a propaganda narrative which empathises with Russian soldiers, and seeks to absolve them of any crimes they, or their army, have committed”.

ABC chair Kim Williams, a major donor to the festival, did not respond to a request for comment.

Olga Boichak, a senior lecturer in digital cultures at the University of Sydney, said: “By humanising the ‘ordinary’ Russian soldiers, the film deliberately obscures the systemic nature of wartime violence against Ukrainian civilians perpetrated by those very soldiers.

“Viewers unfamiliar with this context risk falling for a logical fallacy called ‘bothsidesism’, thinking it is impossible to know the truth amidst narratives that directly contradict each other.’”

Canada’s Globe and Mail, however, last year defended it as an “exceptional documentary” that “in no way glorifies Russia or its army or its war effort”.

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