The film "20 Days in Mariupol" by Ukrainian director Mstyslav Chernov won the best documentary in 2024 and received an Academy Award. This is the first such award in the history of Ukrainian cinema. Find out what makes this film unique and who took the other statuettes

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On the night of 10-11 March, the 96th Academy Awards, the world's main film award, Oscar 2024, took place in Los Angeles.

The blockbuster film Oppenheimer, which tells the story of nuclear physicist Robert Oppenheimer, the scientific director of the Manhattan Project to develop the first nuclear weapons, was expected by many film critics to win the prize.

Oscar 2024 winners

Best film - Oppenheimer.

Best Documentary - 20 Days in Mariupol.

Best Actor - Cillian Murphy, who played Robert Oppenheimer.

Best Actress - Emma Stone.

Best Supporting Actor - Robert Downey Jr.

Best Supporting Actress - Dawn Joy Randolph.

Best Costume Design - Poor Wretches.

Best Feature Short Film - The Remarkable Story of Henry Sugar.

Best Makeup and Hairstyling - Poor Creatures.

Best Director - Christopher Nolan for Oppenheimer.

Best Animated Short Film - "The War is Over. Inspired by the Music of John and Yoko".

Best Adapted Screenplay - American Hustle.

Best Original Score for a Film - American Hustle.

Best Song for a Film - "Barbie" (Billie Eilish).

Best Short Documentary - The last repair shop.

Best Foreign Language Film - Area of Interest.

Best Animated Feature - The Boy and the Heron.

Best Production Design - The Poor Unfortunates.

Best Editing - Oppenheimer.

Best Sound - Area of Interest.

Best Visual Effects - Godzilla: Minus One.

Best Cinematography - Oppenheimer.

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Ukraine's first Oscar in history 

The best documentary film this year was 20 Days in Mariupol, directed by Mstislav Chernov. This is the first Oscar in history to be awarded to a Ukrainian film. 

As a journalist for the Associated Press, Mstyslav Chernov, together with photographer Yevhen Malolitka and producer Vasylina Stepanenko, travelled to Mariupol on 23 February 2022, the day before the full-scale russian invasion.

In many ways, it was thanks to their work that the world learned about what was happening in Mariupol in the spring of 2022, when russian troops besieged the city and destroyed it day after day.

"I wish I had never made this film," Chernov said during the ceremony. - "I would like to exchange this Oscar for russia never invading Ukraine and never attacking our cities again. But together we can make sure that the truth wins. Glory to Ukraine!"

It is worth noting that 20 Days in Mariupol was created in 2023 in collaboration with the Associated Press and Frontline. The film premiered on 21 January 2023 at the Sundance Film Festival, the largest independent film festival in the United States, where it was selected for the World Documentary Competition and won the Audience Award.

The film won the BAFTA Award for Best Documentary and a nomination for Best Foreign Language Film, and won the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in a Documentary.

In total, in January 2024 alone, the film received more than 20 awards and 40 nominations. The film became the highest-grossing Ukrainian documentary.

As we have written, historical films are defined by their ability to reflect important aspects of history through the prism of individual life stories. Read more about the selection of films that reveal aspects of Ukraine's cultural and historical wealth through the lens of the camera and the talent of filmmakers here.

Want to know more? Read the latest news and useful materials about Ukraine and the world in the News section.

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