愛污传媒

Skip to main content

'Our duty to stay': New documentary chronicles first days of Russia-Ukraine war

Share

A new documentary about the first days of the Russian invasion of Mariupol, Ukraine is premiering in Canada at the Hot Docs Film Festival in Toronto on Saturday.

Mstyslav Chernov, an Associated Press journalist and the director of , along with two colleagues captured graphic footage of civilian deaths, a maternity hospital bombing, and the beginnings of the war in the eastern Ukraine port city.

鈥淲e are Ukrainians and we are journalists. And we just felt that it was our duty to stay and to keep reporting as long as it was possible,鈥 Chernov told CTV鈥檚 Your Morning on Friday.

At the time, Chernov and his colleagues were the  in Mariupol.

The footage Chernov and The Associated Press journalists Vasilisa Stepanenko and Evgeniy Maloletka were able to gather and share reports and video of the invasion, including footage of a pregnant woman stretchered out of a bombed maternity hospital on a stretcher that was seen worldwide. Chernov believes their reporting had an impact on the international support and aid Ukraine received in the first days of the war.

In Russia, their footage was claimed as propaganda, Chernov told Your Morning, but 鈥渁s international journalists, we just [had] to keep filming鈥 And we did all of this not because Russia said that we're actors, we did this because it was important to keep showing what was happening to [the Ukrainian] people.鈥

Earlier this year Chernov and his colleagues won the Canadian Journalists for Free Expression for their reporting in Mariupol.

20 Days in Mariupol is playing at the in Toronto on Saturday at 2:45 p.m. EST. You can stream the film on the Hot Docs website from May 5 to May 9.

CTVNews.ca Top Stories

It's a dream for many Canadians, trying to save up enough money for a down payment on their very first home. That was also the dream for the Esmeralda family, a family of five with two dogs who currently live in a Scarborough apartment building.

Donations are quickly pouring in for the family of a young woman who was found dead inside a Walmart in Halifax last weekend.

A haunted house in the Ontario Town of Innisfil is causing a real scare for some people a week before Halloween.

BREAKING

BREAKING

Four people are dead and another is in hospital following a fiery crash in downtown Toronto that happened overnight on Lake Shore Boulevard.

Sri Lanka says 3 locals were arrested over a possible attack on Israel tourists

Sri Lanka police have arrested three persons in connection with a possible attack on Israeli travellers in the Indian ocean island, a government minister said on Thursday, a day after the authorities stepped up the security across the country, with the United States warning of an attack targeting a popular tourist destination.

Local Spotlight

He is a familiar face to residents of a neighbourhood just west of Roncesvalles Avenue.

A meteor lit up our region's sky last night 鈥 with a large fireball shooting across the horizon over Lake Erie at around 7:00 p.m.

Residents of Ottawa's Rideauview neighbourhood say an aggressive wild turkey has become a problem.

A man who lost his life while trying to rescue people from floodwaters, and a 13-year-old boy who saved his family from a dog attack, are among the Nova Scotians who received a medal for bravery Tuesday.

A newly minted Winnipegger is hoping a world record attempt will help bring awareness for the need for more pump track facilities in the city.

A Springfield, Ont. man is being hailed a 'hero' after running into his burning home to save his two infant children.

Hortense Anglin was the oldest graduate to make her way across the platform at York University's Fall Convocation ceremony this week. At the age of 87, she graduated with an Honours degree in Religious Studies.

Looking for a scare with good intentions this Halloween season? The ghosts and ghouls of Eganville, Ont. invite families to tour the Haunted Walk at Lekbor Manor.

The image of a sleepy Saskatchewan small town with 'not a lot going on' is a well-known anecdote. However, one Saskatchewan company is hoping to change that 鈥 and allow communities both on and off the beaten path to share their stories and advertise what they have to offer.