Screening and Panel Discussion: 20 Days in Mariupol
Thursday, October 19 | 6:30PM
FotoFest, Holocaust Museum Houston, and The Institute for Global Engagement at the University of Houston are presenting the Texas premiere of 20 Days in Mariupol, an award-winning documentary film by Pulitzer Prize recipient and Ukrainian photojournalist Mstyslav Chernov, at the Holocaust Museum Houston on Thursday, October 19 at 6:30PM.
The program includes a video introduction by Director Mstyslav Chernov, a screening, and a post-screening discussion featuring a panel of journalism, Eastern European history, and public health experts curated by the Institute for Global Engagement.
The documentary follows an AP team of Ukrainian journalists trapped in the besieged city of Mariupol as they struggle to document the atrocities of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in early 2022. As the only international reporters who remain in the city, they capture what have later become defining images of the war: dying children, mass graves, the bombing of a maternity hospital, and more.
After nearly a decade covering international conflicts, including the Russo-Ukraine war, for The Associated Press, 20 Days in Mariupol is Mstyslav Chernov’s first feature film. The film draws on Chernov’s daily news dispatches and personal footage of his own country at war. It offers a vivid, harrowing account of civilians caught in the siege, as well as a window into what it’s like to report from a conflict zone and the impact of such journalism around the globe.
This screening is held in conjunction with FotoFest’s exhibition Fighting: Ukrainian War Photographers, which features over 255 images of the Russian invasion by sixteen members of the Ukrainian Association of Professional Photographers and is presented at Silver Street Studios at Sawyers between October 5–November 18, 2023.
For free tickets to the Texas premiere screening of 20 Days in Mariupol and the post-screening panel discussion visit the ticketing page on the Holocaust Museum Houston website here.
This program is co-presented by FotoFest, Holocaust Museum Houston, and The Institute for Global Engagement at the University of Houston, with the support of the Ukrainian Association of Professional Photographers and PBS Distribution. Promotional support for this program is provided by HTX4UKRAINE. 20 Days in Mariupol is presented by PBS Distribution and is a Frontline PBS and The Associated Press Production. Visit https://20daysinmariupol.com for more information.
ABOUT THE DIRECTOR
Mstyslav Chernov is a Ukrainian photojournalist, filmmaker, war correspondent, and novelist known for his coverage of the February 2014, Revolution of Dignity; War in Donbas, including the downing of flight MH17; Syrian civil war; Battle of Mosul in Iraq; and the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, including the Siege of Mariupol. Chernov's work has been recognized with numerous awards, including the 2022 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service, the Deutsche Welle Freedom of Speech Award, the Georgiy Gongadze Award, the Knight International Journalism Awards, and the Biagio Agnes Award. He was also included in the nationwide Ukrainian ratings "People of the HB 2022 in the year of war" and "14 songs, photos and art objects that became symbols of Ukrainian resistance" by Forbes Ukraine. Chernov's work has been exhibited in galleries and museums around the world. He is the author of the book The Dreamtime: A Novel (Cherry Orchard Books, 2022) and the director of the documentary film 20 Days in Mariupol (2023), which was awarded the Audience Award in World Cinema Documentary at 2023 Sundance Film Festival.
Chernov is an Associated Press journalist, the president of the Ukrainian Association of Professional Photographers (UAPP) and has been a member of Ukrainian PEN since July 2022. His activity ranges from current affairs to long-term projects related to conflicts, social issues, and environmental crises in all media formats. Chernov's images and video have been published and aired by multiple news outlets worldwide including CNN, BBC, The New York Times, The Washington Post, and others. He has both won and been a finalist for prestigious awards including the Livingston Award, Rory Peck Award, Reporters Without Borders Press Freedom Prize, and multiple Royal Television Society awards.
ABOUT THE GUEST SPEAKERS
The guest speakers for the panel discussion will be announced in the coming days. Check back for more information.
ABOUT FOTOFEST
FotoFest is a Houston-based contemporary arts organization co-founded by photojournalists Frederick Baldwin and Wendy Watriss. FotoFest is dedicated to advancing photography and visual culture through the presentation of exhibitions, public programs, and publications. The examination of social, cultural, and political histories and contemporary life through the lens of photography and related media is central to FotoFest’s mission.
ABOUT HOLOCAUST MUSEUM HOUSTON
Charged with educating students and the public about the dangers of prejudice and hatred in society, Holocaust Museum Houston opened its doors in March of 1996. Since that time, impassioned notes, poems, artwork, and other gifts, from school children and adults alike, attest to the life-changing thoughts generated by just one visit to this unique facility.
Holocaust Museum Houston, Lester and Sue Smith Campus, is fully bilingual in English and Spanish. Located at 5401 Caroline Street, HMH is closed Mondays except Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Memorial Day and Labor Day from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; open Tuesdays through Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sundays from noon to 5 p.m. The Museum’s Legacy Café is open during Museum hours. Admission is $22 for adults; $16 for seniors (ages 65+) and AARP members; free for active duty service members and their families through Labor Day; always free for children and students through age 18; and free to all visitors with new extended hours Thursdays from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. through August 24. Parking is available at the Museum’s adjacent lot for $8 for a four-hour period. Tickets are available exclusively online.
For more information, visit hmh.org/visit.
ABOUT THE INSTITUTE FOR GLOBAL ENGAGEMENT AT THE UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON
The Institute for Global Engagement supports the university’s mission to create global citizens by promoting opportunities that increase the global competence of UH’s notably diverse community. Through academic and co-curricular programs and partnerships supported locally and globally, we seek to build a community of global citizens prepared to solve today’s global challenges.
For more information, visit uh.edu/provost/university/global/.
PUBLIC PROGRAMMING IS MADE POSSIBLE THROUGH PARTNERSHIPS WITH
Holocaust Museum Houston, HTX4UKRAINE, Musiqa, Ukrainian Association of Professional Photographers, Institute for Global Engagement at The University of Houston, and PBS Distribution.
EXHIBITION SUPPORT FOR FIGHTING: UKRAINIAN WAR PHOTOGRAPHERS
Gay Block and Billie Parker, Blair Bouchier and Camile Cohn, Carola Herrin, Anna and Hal Holliday, Frazier King, Carol Kazmer and Paul Liffman, Wendy and Mavis Kelsey, Bryn Larsen, Sandy Jo Lloyd, Sandra Tirey and Jan R. Van Lohuizen, Anne Wilkes Tucker, and Wendy Watriss.
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