Young European Ambassadors help organise London premiere of Oscar-nominated director Afineevsky’s documentary on Ukraine

On 9 May, to celebrate Europe Day 2023, Young European Ambassadors (YEAs) from the European Union, United Kingdom, and Ukraine attended an exclusive premiere of ‘Freedom on Fire: Ukraine’s Fight for Freedom’ by Oscar and Emmy-nominated director Evgeny Afineevsky. 

The screening took place at the Royal Society of Arts in London where guests could also take part in a discussion with Evgeny Afineevsky and producer Shahida Tulaganova. 

‘Freedom on Fire’ is a sequel to ‘Winter on Fire’, Afineevsky’s previous documentary on Ukraine, and shows striking on-the-ground footage of the year-long war. Afineevsky said at the premiere he hopes the documentary will show decision makers the realities Ukrainians face every day. He added that more screenings are planned across Europe.

YEAs also helped with preparations for the event by taking part in the creation of the guest list which included politicians, ambassadors, journalists, and representatives of civil society.“Great piece of documentary filmmaking, intense, emotional, genuine.The film should definitely be made available to the wider audiences, so that as many people as possible can take a look at what a war in the 21st century looks like, and why it is important to help stop it,” said Ukrainian YEAs Antoine Korchagin.