The Australian Federation of Ukrainian Organisations (AFUO) expresses its deep disappointment and distress at the Antenna Documentary Film Festival’s decision to continue screening Russians at War, despite urgent calls from the Ukrainian-Australian community and Ukraine’s Ambassador to Australia to withdraw the film.
“The festival has chosen to provide a platform for narratives which feed russian propaganda. The trailer alone sets up the premise — that the ‘truth’ will be revealed through the human stories of russian soldiers. Yet, nothing could be further from the truth,” said Kateryna Argyrou, co-chair of the AFUO.
“russia’s war against Ukraine has been a brutal war of occupation, devastating our cities, schools, hospitals, and civilian infrastructure. Ukrainian authorities are currently investigating close to 140,000 registered war crimes, including summary executions, torture, sexual violence, and the forced deportation of children,” Ms Argyrou stated.
“And yet, this film seeks to humanise soldiers who are members of the very army committing these crimes. It portrays them as weary, playful, dancing, laughing, even romancing their girlfriends. What it fails to mention is these soldiers are not innocent victims – they are contracted soldiers, who are paid three times the average russian wage, and who have freely signed up to join an invading army. The movie also fails to acknowledge that russia invaded a sovereign nation in violation of international law. It does not mention war crimes. It does not criticise the Putin regime. Without this context, audience members are encouraged to feel sympathy for russian soldiers as just ‘regular people,’ instead of recognising them as active participants in a genocidal war. Festival organisers have suggested they could include their own context before the film – but this is tacit acknowledgement of the deep flaws of this film.
“This film is not an independent exposé — it is a carefully controlled narrative that serves the interests of the russian state. For evidence of this, look no further at the director Anastasia Trofimova’s resume to see that she once worked for russia’s state-owned propaganda outlet Russia Today. Further, it is highly improbable that she was able to embed herself with a russian battalion in occupied Ukraine for seven months without approval from the russian Defence Ministry, so this should be seen for what it is: state-backed propaganda. Indeed, the Security Service of Ukraine has opened an investigation into the director,” said Ms Argyrou.
“We urge the Antenna Documentary Film Festival to reconsider its decision. To ‘balance’ this narrative with a suggested post-screening discussion is deeply inadequate and offensive — damage will already be done by the film’s amoral stance. Instead, we call on all government bodies, festival sponsors, and the wider Australian community to stand against this whitewashing of war crimes and demand the cancellation of all screenings of Russians at War. As cultural activists, the festival organisers stand to abandon Ukrainian creatives by screening a film humanising members of an invading army which has systematically destroyed Ukraine’s cultural heritage and killed over 100 fellow creatives.
“To the festival organisers, we say this: This is not a matter of artistic freedom. This is about moral responsibility. ” Ms Argyrou concluded.
