Roses. Film-Cabaret: screening

Our Ukrainian Documentary Season: ‘People Power’ returns to bring a set of three powerful documentaries from contemporary Ukrainian cinema to the streets of Birmingham, in partnership with Centrala Space and Docudays UA International Human Rights Documentary Film Festival.

The three-day film festival chronicles the profound changes Ukraine has undergone since the 2014 Maidan Revolution and Russia’s aggression, highlighting the stories of people united by a shared purpose. People Power is curated by Olga Sydorushkina, Ukrainian Institute London’s Programme Curator.

Roses. Film-Cabaret is a tragicomic musical featuring 7 actors of the Dakh Daughters Band, living through the pivotal moment of the 2014 Maidan Revolution.

A story of civil dignity and political will, told in the language of cabaret by seven women in white makeup and black tutus.

This political cabaret draws its magic from combining joie de vivre and the horror of the devastating war—even if we don’t see it yet, its shadow is always there, darkened by the bright stage lights. This collective portrait of Dakh Daughters, shot on stage, in dressing rooms and on the road, paints a picture of being an artist under extreme conditions of pain and loss, realising that during the war, self-defence is the only natural response—in terms of art as well as motherhood.

The film shows revolution through the female gaze of the artists, which gives it a particular humane perspective, celebrating life rather than heroic deeds. The film captures the inception of what is going on in Ukraine today—incredible unity of Ukrainian people standing against the Russian assault on Ukraine, Europe, and the free world.