FRONTLINE and AP Documentary 20 Days in Mariupol Nominated for Academy Award
January 23, 2024
TUE., JAN 23 — 20 DAYS IN MARIUPOL, the feature documentary from the PBS documentary series FRONTLINE, and The Associated Press, has been honored with an Academy Award® nomination in the Documentary Feature Film category. FRONTLINE is produced at GBH in Boston.
A powerful, first-person view of the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, 20 DAYS IN MARIUPOL is told through the perspective of Ukrainian filmmaker and AP video journalist Mstyslav Chernov. After nearly a decade covering international conflicts, including the Russia-Ukraine war, for The Associated Press, the Oscar-nominated documentary is Mstyslav Chernov’s first feature film.
Described as “essential” and “a relentless and truly important documentary” by The New York Times and “a brave, visceral, merciless masterpiece” by The Guardian, the film follows Chernov and his AP colleagues Evgeniy Maloletka and Vasilisa Stepanenko as they become the last international journalists reporting from Mariupol amid Russian troops’ siege. Together, the journalists, who would go on to win a 2023 Pulitzer Prize, documented what would become indelible images of the war: dying children, mass graves, the bombing of a maternity hospital, and more.
Following a decorated run on the film festival circuit, 20 DAYS IN MARIUPOL had its U.S. broadcast premiere on PBS stations in November 2023 and is now available to stream online at pbs.org/frontline, in the PBS App, on FRONTLINE’s YouTube channel and on the PBS Documentaries Amazon Prime Channel. The documentary is distributed domestically by PBS Distribution and internationally by Dogwoof.
“It is an incredible privilege to see 20 DAYS IN MARIUPOL recognized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science. Thank you for this nomination, and congratulations to all the other nominees,” said Chernov. “It gives me hope that the story of Mariupol and other Ukrainian cities, that are getting attacked every day, will remain in people’s hearts.”
Directed, written and produced by Chernov, and produced and edited by FRONTLINE’s Michelle Mizner alongside producers Raney Aronson-Rath (FRONTLINE’s editor-in-chief and executive producer) and Derl McCrudden (AP’s vice president of news), 20 DAYS IN MARIUPOL draws on Chernov’s daily news dispatches and personal footage of his own country at war. The result is a raw and haunting account of a journalist risking his life to share the truth of the conflict with the world.
“In the face of unimaginable terror and tragedy, The Associated Press’ Mstyslav Chernov, Evgeniy Maloletka and Vasilisa Stepanenko documented what would become the beginning of a grim chapter of Ukraine’s history. In doing so, their commitment to telling this story has ensured that the atrocities of this war will never be forgotten,” said Aronson-Rath. “We are honored to see the film recognized by the Academy with this nomination. I share this honor with director and producer Mstyslav, Michelle, Derl, our partners at The Associated Press, as well as with PBS Distribution, GBH, PBS and CPB. We hope that 20 DAYS IN MARIUPOL will remind audiences everywhere of the human impact of war.”
“Despite extremely challenging and deeply personal circumstances, AP’s Mariupol team offered the world an essential window into the Russia-Ukraine war as it was beginning to unfold,” said AP Senior Vice President and Executive Editor Julie Pace. “That the Academy has chosen to recognize 20 DAYS IN MARIUPOL’ is a testament to the power of eyewitness journalism and the bravery of the journalists on the ground. We are incredibly proud of Mstyslav Chernov, Evgeniy Maloletka, Vasilisa Stepanenko and the entire 20 DAYS IN MARIUPOL team.”
“Fact-based, courageous journalism is a hallmark of FRONTLINE films and it’s more important than ever that audiences all over the world watch this documentary,” said GBH CEO Susan Goldberg. “We’re grateful for this nomination.”
“We are extremely honored to have 20 DAYS IN MARIUPOL recognized by the Academy,” said Paula Kerger, President and CEO of PBS. “PBS has always been the home of significant documentaries, and we are so proud to be able to share this landmark film with our audiences on PBS. Congratulations to Raney Aronson-Rath, Mstyslav Chernov, Evgeniy Maloletka and Vasilisa Stepanenko, and all of the other partners who earned this recognition.”
20 DAYS IN MARIUPOL made its world premiere in January 2023 at the Sundance Film Festival and was the recipient of the festival’s World Cinema Documentary Competition Audience Award. Since its debut, the film has received numerous accolades, including receiving two BAFTA Film Award nominations, two Critics Choice Documentary Awards, a Cinema Eye Honors Award, a duPont-Columbia Award nomination, and the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA)’s NPO Audience Award.
The 96th Annual Academy Awards® will be held on Sunday, March 10, 2024 in Los Angeles. Stream the Oscar-nominated documentary in full below:
Anne Husted, ,
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7sa7SZ6arn1%2BstKO0jp%2BpqKakobavsY6aqa2hk6GycLLRqKWtpJmjsm6tzZ1kmqhdmbykwcyepa2Zoq56c3yMnZiyq12eu265wKugrqifoXqvu8yipZqslZl6p7vRZpicmZSaurp5wLCYq5xf