Production of a new documentary series on Chernobyl has begun in Ukraine

Production of a new documentary series on Chernobyl has begun in Ukraine

Filming of the Chernobyl documentary project has begun in Ukraine . The series became the winner of the 14th pitching of the State Cinema and is being shot by the MMD PRO film company in co-production with the German production Looks Film.

“Chernobyl” is a documentary series, which is not only about the tragedy that happened at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, but also about the events that preceded it. The creators are deeply immersed in history and in each episode will show different stages: the construction of the first reactors of the nuclear power plant and their launch, the construction of the promising city of Pripyat, the catastrophe and its consequences for our present and future.

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“Chernobyl” won the pitching of the State Cinema and it is logical that the Agency invests as much as possible in its creation. After all, such projects – socially important, exclusive, with a well-thought-out script and shot with the participation of professionals, should raise the level of film production in Ukraine. And even more – to create the image of a progressive and caring Ukraine both in the international arena and at home. 

Much has already been done about Chernobyl, but I believe that a project that seeks to show the most complete picture, to tell about events from a new unexpected angle, and on which both the creators and the state are working together, is doomed to success.

Maryna Kuderchuk, Head of the State Agency of Ukraine for Cinematography

“Chernobyl” contains unique evidence of the direct participants of events – people who lived utopian idea of “city of the future” and who saw everything with their own eyes. In addition, for the first time, the project will reveal exclusive archival materials, information from which has been withheld for years.

When we started this project, I heard only one question everywhere: what is its uniqueness? So, our “Chernobyl” is not a series about the tragedy. This is a film that shows the life of the dream city, reveals the preconditions and causes of the tragedy, shows the faces of people who believed in a better future and built it, and who lost everything in one day. Our project is about the connection of generations and the connection between the events of those times and the future of each of us .

Producer Roman Martinenko

The documentary series “Chernobyl”, in addition to an integrated approach, has several trump cards: the project team will for the first time remove the Chernobyl nuclear power plant from the water, as well as inside the reactor. For the first time, the chief architect of Pripyat, Maria Protsenko, will give a video interview. Chernobyl chief engineer Mykola Steinberg, firefighter Petro Khmil, senior management engineer at the fourth power unit Oleksiy Breus, PVS lieutenant colonel Serhiy Volodin, nuclear power plant art secretary Serhiy Parashyn, pilot Ihor Pismensky and others will tell their stories .

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A Ukrainian team led by the series’ producer Roman Martynenko (MMD PRO film company) and director Andriy Alferov is working on the project. German film crew of Looks Film production: producer Gunnar Dedio, authors and screenwriters of the project Dirk Schneider and Ariana Reeker. The exclusive soundtrack, as well as the musical design for the series is specially written by the band ONUKA.

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Chernobyl has long ceased to be just a man-made disaster, it has become a cultural phenomenon. Reflecting on the theme of this tragedy, we did not notice how much we enriched not only the national culture, but also the world. Created a new life after the disaster. This series is another attempt to delve into the theme of Chernobyl, and through it – into human nature. Our nature with you .

The director of the project Andrey Alferov

The project is created with the support of the State Agency of Ukraine for Cinema and the German TV channel ZDF. Filming of the Ukrainian-German documentary series “Chernobyl” will continue until the end of autumn. The premiere of the project in Ukraine is scheduled for spring 2022.

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