20 Days in Mariupol director wins Director's Guild of America award

DGA Awards official website reports.

The DGA Awards ceremony took place on the night of February 11 in Los Angeles.

Together with Mstyslav Chernov, directors Christopher Sharp and Moses Bwayo competed for this award with the film 'Bobi Wine: The People's President', Madeleine Gavin with 'Beyond Utopia', Davis Guggenheim with 'Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie', and D. Smith with 'Kokomo City'.

The U.S. Directors Guild Award is one of the specialized film awards that identifies potential leaders of the famous Oscars, which will be awarded on March 11 in Los Angeles.

Read also: Occupied Mariupol on film: Ukrainian Oscar-nominated documentary VS Russian propaganda

In his acceptance speech, Chernov referred to Russia's daily attacks on Ukraine, and in particular the strike on his hometown of Kharkiv on February 9. "Seven people were killed, including three children. So this is a sad day. I fully realize the power of cinema as I stand here and look at you. Because when these children, these people are trying to escape from the strike and take shelter to cope with fear, they watch movies," the director emphasized. "Movies help all of us cope with this sometimes unbearable world, an unjust world, and give us hope to stop all the bad things and move towards a better future.”

• Mstyslav Chernov's documentary '20 Days in Mariupol' has been nominated for the Oscars in the Best Feature Documentary category in 2024.