The DOCU/CLASS workshop has been a welcoming destination for all those who wish to get acquainted with the nuances of cinematography and delve into the multiple dimensions of documentary filmmaking. Yet, this year’s program is centered on discussions – our experience suggests that dynamic conversations work out better than traditional lectures. Olha Birzul, the program’s curator, takes us through the details.
As a matter of fact, one of the topics was suggested by recent dramatic events – the shutdown of two Kyiv cinemas. That’s why we invited Ukrainian civil activists, architects and urbanists to discuss the decline of cultural centers. They will present some of their successful projects focused on cultivating public spaces and will inspire us to change and struggle at the event titled “Public Spaces: Free Access?” (March 24, 12:00).
Naturally, we couldn’t ignore the festival’s key topic – digital technology and the Internet, irreversibly redefining the look of modern films. Art critics, artists and researchers from the Dovzhenko Center will join us to imagine the perfect archive of the future, the process of total digitalization and the transformation of collective memory at the round table discussion titled “Cure for Ageing. The New Digital Body for Cultural Heritage” (March 23, 15:00). The participants of the contemporary filmmaking process will talk about VOD-platforms disrupting the market and forming what is the new reality of digital film distribution at the discussion “Does Netflix Affect the Language of Cinema?” (24 March, 15:00). We’ve also invited Olga Kravets, a filmmaker with multiple years of experience in documentaries, to focus on the web-documentary genre and the best examples of online storytelling (26 March, 15:00).
We are also planning to touch on crucial aspects of filmmaking. Conquering and systematizing large volumes of film while also staying true to life – this is what this year’s jury member, Qutaiba Barhamji, with his experience editing documentaries and feature films in 12 languages, will talk about (March 25, 15:00). The manipulative power of sound design, its ethical and aesthetic peculiarities will be covered by composers, sound directors and producers at the “Sound and Music in Documentary Filmmaking” roundtable (March 25, 12:30).
This year’s festival will also include a special event – a meeting between the directors of Ukrainian full-length films featured in the Docudays UA program and the critic team of the Kyiv Criticism Week. The guests will be discussing the topics selected for the films and Ukrainian documentary filmmaking writ large (March 28, 12:00).
It is our pleasure to remind visitors that admission to all DOCU/CLASS events is free.
“Zhovten” cinema, “Klasik” hall, March 23-28, 2019.
