Through the Ukrainian–Swedish Short Film Exchange for Emerging Voices, Uppsala Short Film Festival and Kyiv International Short Film Festival are connecting Ukrainian talent with established professionals in Sweden’s film industry. The initiative seeks to build long-term professional relationships and strengthen artistic exchange between the two countries.
As part of the program, emerging Ukrainian filmmakers take part in tailored sessions with Swedish film professionals, including script consultants, producers, programmers, and distributors. These meetings are designed to provide creative and strategic guidance, foster international collaboration, and support the development of new film projects. In the Ukrainian Showcase, the four selected Ukrainian short film projects will be presented.
Mentors:
Nayeem Mahbub (Script)
Jenny Luukkonen (Co-production)
Jing Haase (Pitch and distribution)
CHERRY PIEROGI
One day in the life of an old woman and her granddaughter, captured in memory like a dragonfly in a jar. The story is told through the eyes of a child who takes the carefree life around her for granted. But small details in this idyllic picture hint at some unhappy events in the old woman’s life.
Director/Writer: Olha Havrylova
Producer: Mykyta Moiseiev
Production Company: Eleron Pictures
SHATTERED ICE
Thirty-year-old Olia searches for affordable therapy in wartime Kyiv to stabilise clinical depression after divorcing a military veteran. Instead, she encounters a series of absurd, unethical and harmful “specialists,” turning her search into a tragicomic odyssey. A chance encounter with Misha, a firefighter responding to Russian missile strikes, changes her perspective, helping Olia find compassion for herself — and for those who tried, and failed, to help her.
Director: Lesia Diak
Producers: Anna Kapustina, Lesia Diak, Victoria Svitlychna
Production Company: DramaFree, Albatros Communicos Ukraine
SOMEWHERE IN THE DARK
28-year-old Slava is trying to live through another day during the blackouts, feeling constant confusion, fatigue, and emptiness. The only thing that motivates her is the need to send a parcel to her boyfriend, a serviceman. She accumulates all her strength to fulfill this task, along with a couple of other vital ones, such as a work call and eating. But at almost every step, Slava encounters minor obstacles — the lack of necessary goods in the store, power outages, the post office closing due to an air raid siren — which together make these seemingly simple tasks almost impossible.
Director: Anastasiya Gruba
Producer: Oleksandra Kostina
Production Company: Bosonfilm
WHERE BORDERS LIVE
Maria, a young military medic at a stabilisation point, helps keep ”temporary guests” alive — wounded soldiers who find themselves in an unknown dimension between life and death. Time allows us to understand how blurred this line is — how life and death can exist in the same place. Through her reflections, feelings, and experiences — we delve into this world, which seems harsh but is sensitive and kind. How can one preserve one’s humanity when death becomes a daily presence?
Director/Writer: Sofiia Buhrii
Producer: Sabina Asadova
Production Company: Salt Cinema Productions, LLC (Ukraine)
