This year, we continue to develop the practice of accessible film screenings. Almost all festival films will feature descriptive subtitles for people with hearing impairments, the number of films with audio description for viewers with visual impairments has increased, and key events of the Human Rights Program, as well as the opening ceremony, will be interpreted into sign language.

SCREENINGS WITH AUDIO DESCRIPTION (AD)

Films with audio description are accompanied by a special voiceover track that describes actions, emotions, locations, and other important visual elements. This allows blind and visually impaired viewers to fully immerse themselves in the atmosphere of the film.

How does it work

— When at the cinema, use the free app Earcatch: download it on your phone, choose the film, put on your headphones, and listen to the description in real time.
— In the online cinema DOCUSPACE, click the AD button near the player.

List of films with audio description:

• Songs of Slow Burning Earth (Olha Zhurba, Ukraine, Denmark, Sweden, France)

• Timestamp (Kateryna Gornostai, Ukraine, Luxembourg, Netherlands, France)

• My dear Theo (Alisa Kovalenko, Poland, Ukraine, Czech Republic)

• In Limbo (Alina Maksimenko, Poland)

• My Sweet Child (Maarten De Schutter, Netherlands)

• Glass, My Unfulfilled Life (Rogier Kappers, Netherlands)

• American Pastoral (Auberi Edler, France)

• Militantropos (Yelizaveta Smith, Alina Gorlova, Simon Mozghovyi, Ukraine, Austria, France)

• Sanatorium (Gar O’Rourke, Ireland, Ukraine, France)

• The Track (Ryan Sidhoo, Canada, Bosnia and Herzegovina)

• King Ridwan (Sammy Shefa Idris, Netherlands)

• Echo (Emi Buchwald, Poland)

• What’s the Film About? (Poorva Bhat, India)

• A Place to Call Home (Parisa Aminolahi, Netherlands)

• Mû (Malin Neumann, Germany)

These screenings are made possible thanks to a partnership with the Dostupne Kino initiative, which develops the culture of inclusive film screenings in Ukraine.

SCREENINGS WITH DESCRIPTIVE SUBTITLES

Almost all films in the 2025 program will have adapted subtitles that convey not only dialogue but also surrounding sounds: music, footsteps, gunshots, rain. This format provides viewers with hearing impairments with more meanings and atmospheric details.

How does it work

— When at the cinema, descriptive subtitles are embedded directly into the video.
— In the online cinema DOCUSPACE, simply click the subtitle icon in the top left corner and select the descriptive subtitle track.




EVENTS WITH SIGN LANGUAGE INTERPRETATION

The festival’s opening ceremony and 11 events from the RIGHTS NOW! human rights programme will be interpreted into Ukrainian Sign Language so that even more participants can join important discussions.

Docudays UA 2025 strives to be a place where everyone can watch, hear, feel, and understand cinema — without any barriers. Please join our events and spread the news to those who may care.

The 22nd Docudays UA is held with the financial support of the European Union, the Embassy of Sweden in Ukraine, International Renaissance Foundation. The opinions, conclusions, or recommendations do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union, the governments, or organisations of these countries. Responsibility for the content of the publication lies exclusively with the authors and editors of the publication.