On February 17 the House of Cinematographer in Kyiv hosted Contact Studio’s premiere, a documentary about Kolomyia [a town in Western Ukraine].
I am inclined to describe the new production as a confession of love, for every scene is permeated precisely with such deep and tender feeling. The film leaves you very impressed, because this confession is made not by sentimental teenagers but by serious and talented men: Ivan Havryliuk, author of the project and narrator, cameraman Eduard Timlin, director Timur Zaloyev, and composer Ihor Lebedkin. This attitude is conveyed to the audience, and nor was it coincidental that those in the audience, after watching the film, discussed it and spoke of Kolomyia and its people with sentiments of filial piety. Actor Oleksandr Bystrushkin recalled that Kolomyia’s railroad station marked the beginning of his professional career. Many items in Viktor Yushchenko’s father’s life are associated with that mountainous area, and its very spirit must have had its effect on the future premier’s character. Ivan Havryliuk shows an entirely new aspect of his talent in the new production; the narrator’s text is a pleasant surprise with its versatility of mature images and a strong poetic touch.
The documentary is not packed with information; you will not learn how old the town is, its labor attainments, and which of the residents are held in special esteem. In short, connoisseurs of hard facts and sociological research are not likely to find much in it. But the emotional aspect is very strong. The impression is that the camera crew wanted to show just one day in Kolomyia’s life, starting with the dawn haze and lasting through the full workday, with its hustle and bustle, until the evening quiet. The whole versatility of this daily life is presented with emphasis on detail, shown with skillful precision, complemented with curious observations, using scenes from old newsreels. A closer look at current realities shows not the usual disgusting things but human faces and eyes. After watching a film like this one feels much better, perhaps even carefree, because one has been shown ordinary people, their daily routine, instead of political horse trading during a time of social cataclysms. Also, it is gratifying to know that someone is prepared to finance this kind of filmmaking, and that there are dedicated filmmakers capable of producing such works.
Indeed, the documentary about Kolomyia is part of a project. Studio manager, Larysa Rodnianska, the only woman on the team, says that, in addition to two other Contact standing projects, the Chosen by the Times (about Ukrainian celebrities) series and one dedicated to noted contemporaries, they have a third project portraying Ukrainian cities. There are already two documentaries about Luhansk and Donetsk and now the third about Kolomyia. Financing is a problem, of course, but Viktor Yushchenko assured them that he would find money for the new project.
