Czech director brought three Putin supporters to Ukraine to film a documentary about Russia's aggressive war

Czech director Robin Kvapil showed pro-Russian citizens of the Czech Republic Russia's war against Ukraine without censorship and staging in his documentary film "The Great Patriotic Journey". Last October, the film crew, together with three main characters, admirers of Russian dictator Vladimir Putin, went to the center of the military conflict to see with their own eyes what Russia's war in Ukraine looks like.

UNN reports with reference to ČT24.

Details

For the first time in my life, I see a residential area where there is no one at all

To me, (Ukrainians) do not seem like a suffering nation, over which missiles fly every day. .. The Great Patriotic Journey

She also claims that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy "travels the world, begging for money for a lost war." In addition, it is emphasized that this woman is committed to "green" and "liberal" ideologies.

When Kvapil planned the documentary, he said he did not aim to open the eyes of people like her.

I relied on my own experience as a documentary filmmaker. When you see some things in the news, it's different than when you're on the ground

The director found three people he took to Ukraine through an advertisement. It said that they protect those who doubt the war.

We were looking for people who, in a way, hold so-called anti-system positions. They question aid to Ukraine or openly support Russia and Putin. We found sixty of them who were interested in participating in the project

For example, one of the selected participants claims in the documentary that he "experienced a lot" and met many Russians, "none of whom cheated."

A lot preceded this

Another character in the documentary agrees with this, according to whom, "the Russians had nothing else to do." In this sense, Russian propaganda justifies the invasion of another country.

"Cuba and Alaska": Documentary film about Ukrainian paramedics shown at international festival in Britain22.06.25, 10:20 • 4392 views

Kvapil has a certain understanding of people who question the reasons for the war.

He says that some life situations are a "breeding ground" for such thoughts. In the film, for example, one of the main characters admits that when he returns from a trip to Ukraine, no one will be waiting for him at home.

According to Kvapil, the film's characters also showed courage by going to a country where there is a war. But he himself says that he would not want to live in a world where their opinions would prevail.

I think they doubted a lot during the filming, a lot went through their minds

The trio in the film are not passive observers. They film the events themselves, questioning Ukrainians – whether in the Kharkiv metro, where there are improvised classrooms, or at mass graves in Izium. Despite the reality of war, a certain skepticism is noticeable in them.

Of course, (Russians) do not attack hospitals because they want to kill the sick

However, in other, later excerpts, they express respect for Ukrainians, hug them, say that they teach or enrich themselves.

According to Kvapil, it is impossible to completely convert someone to faith.

I think something can be changed with some consistent dialogue, but it would be a dialogue that would last for years. And an incredible amount of energy

Personally, for him, the strongest conversations were with locals.

We filmed for a while, but they have been living with this for four years. We studied in schools where small children constantly face this. I almost fainted when they thanked us for our work, because, you know, they are dying there, and I am making stupid movies

The official premiere of the documentary will take place on August 21.

Addition

Yaroslav Hrubych, son of TV presenter Kostiantyn Hrubych, suffered a severe injury at the front, as a result of which he lost an arm and temporarily hearing. He announced this on Facebook, calling it his second "birthday".