Special Issues on Ukrainian Cinema

Abstract

This review essay examines three recent English-language special journal issues that mark a significant turn in Ukrainian film scholarship: Slavic and East European Journal, vol. 68, no. 3, Fall 2024, ed. Ana Olenina Hedberg; Cinema: Journal of Philosophy and the Moving Image, vol. 15, no. 1, December 2023, eds. Mariia Lihus and Patricia Castello Branco; and Studies in Russian and Soviet Cinema, vol. 18, no. 3, November 2024, eds. Jeremy Hicks and Leonid Machulin. These volumes collectively challenge the long-standing Russocentric framing of Ukrainian cinema, offering correctives to historiographic gaps and foregrounding overlooked films, filmmakers, and institutions. They span a wide temporal range, from early Soviet era experimentation to post-Maidan documentary movements, and reflect diverse methodological approaches, including historical, philosophical, and political lenses. While these volumes do not replace the long-absent English language history of Ukrainian cinema, they provide a vital foundation for its future development. By amplifying Ukrainian voices and encouraging transnational dialogue, they reframe the field and ignite new directions for research and teaching.