I'm now talking to Anna Yaroshenko. She's living in Kiev, an Ukrainian filmmaker. Anna, it's great to have you with us. So let's start probably with your own and personal experiences concerning this ongoing war against Ukraine. Hi, Martin. Thank you, first of all, for your interest in talking to me. And my experience, I mean, I happened to be in Kiev quite unexpectedly. I returned back home in January, which I did not plan because I had to keep working in Kazakhstan and Almaty at my school. But I happened to return to Kiev on January 14th. And since that time, I'm in Kiev. to Kyiv on January 14th. And since that time, I'm in Kyiv. And my experience, what to say, first of all, I would say that I am extremely lucky to have apartment in Kyiv and to live in Kyiv because it's a capital city. It's a heart of Ukraine. And the defense by Ukrainian army is very strong. And that's why I can continue to live in my apartment. I also extremely grateful for every single worker who provides electricity, water, cleaning, taking garbage, maintaining our city. I would like to say it's really huge work of people who are really not often mentioned, but that is why I live in my apartment, I had heating system working until the day of its shutting down, like due to the April month. I have hot water. I mean, I really can cook. I can wash. I can live in my apartment. my apartment and uh i also i'm also lucky to live in the one of those areas that also uh comparing to some other areas are more safe because there are some places you know we had uh rockets uh falling like remain uh remnants of rockets falling on some buildings in some areas. Some buildings were ruined. Some people really lost their apartments, their homes. And I'm still very lucky. lucky and every morning when I wake up I say first of all thank you to my I don't know god guardian angel whoever that it's really like gift now every single morning I wake up it's a gift to As far as we know, the Ukrainian military defense forces are still able to keep Russian aggressors away from the capital. How safe can you feel? How much do you trust in your own military defense? I fully trust, absolutely. I'm of of these guys i uh see these uh photos i see this i mean it's it's kind of uh i probably don't have words to express how much i proud like really happy and grateful and thankful and proud of them. And they're amazing. They just like, I'm not surprised very much in their kind of intense of wish to protect because it's famous for through history how always Ukrainian people protected country, how always they fought for freedom so it's but it's still another higher level of understanding to which extent they really do this so it's still another higher level of understanding to which extent they really do this. So it's full. Of course, I understand that the number of people is just like normal statistics, how big Russia and how, like, the number of people in Ukraine. So I understand. And because of this understanding of how this balance in a number of people there and here, I understand to which extent they really fight strong and seriously. And it's just like amazing, amazing people, amazing guys. During the preparation of our talk today, I've got some impressions of your biography you sent to me. And I can tell, I guess, that you are very familiar with international activities, that you are traveling around as an artist and joining several festivals all over the world. And now this unbelievable war happens in Ukraine. What's the consequences for you? In which sense your emotions are affected? In which sense your perspective as a creative person, as a globalized artwork, how is this affected by this incredible war? Yes, thank you for this question because that was one of my main self-reflections during all these days. Because I am, first of all, I'm an international teacher. I've been working at the IB school, different schools in different countries. And the main aspect that was inherited by that is to become a cosmopolitan, to become tolerant to everything, to become politically correct as part of my job, because in my class I could have Russian and Ukrainian, Armenian and Turkish student, Japanese and Chinese. And these students from IB school, they plan to enter world universities like starting from Harvard, Oxford, Cambridge, and all other universities. So we had to learn this tolerance, this ability to understand human rights and follow them. And on the first week, so it's kind of, it came into my blood, this thing. And I really enjoyed that because for me, as for artist, it expanded my world. I started to travel very late because, you know, Soviet Union and borders and all that did not make it possible. So when I started to travel, when I started to work abroad, I was happy to get this experience of a true international person. of a true international person. And the first week after February 24, my brain really could not put together these two things that in my class in Kazakhstan, I had half of my students were Russian students, Russian nationality. And I had to put now all these things together that this is the enemy now, the Russian person. Yes, first it was like thinking only of soldiers. Yes, that is quite clear. But when things started to escalate and when we started to see true atrocities, true murder, true massacre they do on my land, I started to feel differently. started to feel differently. And for me now, it's a horrible thing for me as an international person that just the word Russian becomes for me the word I can't pronounce. While I do have some friends from past that I know in person who are Russians, but I put them aside because I know them in person. I know their personalities as international people who really understand everything and more, even more help ukraine they help to they participate in all humanitarian aid and all these things there are few people i know in person but i don't i put them aside i comprehend everything in general and i understand how how everything is getting different for me now. And like, for example, my dad, my dad, my father was born in Bucha. It's his motherland, you know. And what I see, what I see on photos what what I understand this it's beyond my beyond my heart and brain possibility to accept it's beyond because all my life I was um even before I started to travel I was, even before I started to travel, I was probably an international person because I wanted to travel. I wanted to see the world. I read many books about traveling. I mean, I read a lot of Russian literature. I read a lot of Russian literature and you know it's ridiculous how now I really I don't want to read these books. I don't want to maybe it will I will overcome this later I don't know when and how. But right at this moment, even those people, those writers or maybe singers who are good and they, let's say, I know that Andrei Makarevich, you know, like Mashina Vremeni, he's been always on the side of Ukraine. And I know he's a fantastic man. But I don't think that now I will be able even to listen to his songs because they're in Russian language. And it's just hard for me right now. While it's without any doubt that Makaryevich is that person who we can say yes, he is a man. And since 2014 he is supporting Ukraine and like I mean, there is no kind of any aspect of him to discuss with his dignity and personality, a real true man. But still, I can't now. It's very hard. And for me, as I say, with my, all my international mind every single day, plus my husband comes home after every day of his volunteering, he listened to stories. He has relatives and friends and all these villages and he has, he comes every day and tells something else. And just every single day makes, for my heart, my attitude to all these things is more and more difficult. As far as I understood, you decided to stay in Kiev as a sort of a statement that you will not leave your country behind, that you us a feeling how do you spend your day your daily life what are you doing during the day you already mentioned your husband he's volunteering probably you can describe a bit more precisely what are you doing? Yes, sure. I agree what you said, yes, that it was my decision to stay here. And first of all, it was my decision made because like when my husband, he has his daughter from the first marriage. When he got opportunity to take her on the train and to let her go to evacuate, to escape Kiev, he asked me whether I would like to get on the same train with her. And I said no. to get on the same train with her? And I said, no. And I even didn't think because for me, it was clear that my husband has to stay here. And it was not for him clear at that moment was maybe fourth or fifth day what he would do. But it was clear that he is not leaving. would do, but it was clear that he is not living. It was maybe kind of like sensing that, that he is not living. And he was very happy when he found the area he could be useful. And it happened kind of like at the same rail station where he took his daughter and people asked him to help. And he was ready to help. But I knew that he is the man who is in age of protecting his country. He is not going abroad. And actually, I suspected that he would not even go to the Western Ukraine to hide. that he would not even go to the Western Ukraine to hide. And actually, I feel very proud for having such a man in my life because I know people who escaped and whose hands are needed here in Kiev, hands to help because we still need people to do some things like volunteering and doing many things. But for me, it was clear because I married him not long ago. I have known him for a long time, but we lived together for not a long time. And for me, it's clear how could I leave that person? I mean, what is the reason for me to get married if I go and stay safe and I leave him here? I'm very scared to be here. I'm very scared. I'm not a brave person at all. But I would probably, like, I mean, it's everyday stress for me when I hear sirens, when I hear explosions. My heart is dropping down, and I can't do anything. I'm just listening to these explosions. But being away from my husband would be additional uh uh stress for me because it means i'm safe and he's not no i i just can't understand this it's it's it's saying that i can't understand that's it and uh on the other hand i know that because i can do something in my apartment to keep it cozy and because it is safe so far because of what I already said and I can cook for him good food that's what I can do for him to make his life a bit easier and that's what I do I go a bit of shopping because I need to buy food, but I started to do it, I think, on the maybe seventh day, no, even tenth day of the war. Third, we had some food at home in my fridge. I always keep some stuff so we could use it. And only like on one day, I remember I called my neighbor, who also stays in the apartment near mine, and asked him whether he can follow me to the market to buy food because I was scared to go alone. It was like 25 minutes walk. He went with me and I realized I can go. And then I started to go, but I still don't go far away. I know that some people have even walking days in parks when it is quiet. It's just personal. My brain cannot do that. I mean, I can't walk. I can maybe do something inside my apartment, but I can't go for work. I can go for the shopping to buy food. Or like there were a couple of times when I had from my husband errands to do something a little bit further. One day I had to go to the bank. That was about one hour walking distance. I still can't believe that I did it because there were empty streets and not the main roads. So it was very scary, but I had to do that. And it was only one office that was open, the nearest one hour walk. So it's just about me. I'm that person because i know i know that people walk and people can like my husband he works on this unloading uh this humanitarian aid and he there were days when the whole day he could hear close explosions but first of, he's a bit different. And he was very busy to pay too much attention. And my day, like keeping my apartment clean, like to cook, to wash, to read news, of course, then try not to read news. I can't read books at all I can't focus even if I have time even now these days which are more quiet but I do sometimes reading for example this morning I started to read United Nations Charter and I'm going to finish it because I started to read United Nations Charter. And I'm going to finish it. Because our president's speech was about kind of his address in United Nations, about some aspects. And I decided that I would like to know a bit more. And I think I will spend more time reading this because this becomes really quite interesting aspect for me to read right now. What's also interesting is that Kiev has a mayor who is well known all over Europe due to this successful boxing career a long time ago, Vladimir Klitschko, he's always drawing a lot of attention on him because he's very, very skilled. I don't know why, but he's very active in communication, in explaining, in doing interviews, even in several languages. What does he mean to you, your mayor, Glitschko, as a person? Is your mayor the right man for this time? What are the points you can amaze him? What are the points you can amaze him? Look, to be honest, I'm the person who was always in an area of art and not in the area of really depth of of not politics, but let's say this administrative aspects of Kyiv. So I paid attention to some aspects before the war, what he does and I read sometimes news and information. So I can't say much regarding these things because I'm not very knowledgeable about these things. But what I can tell as an ordinary person that what administration we have now, I think what I see, they do work. And I see that they do much of work. Into details, I don't get into all the steps of what he does, but I see that all our administration, mayor and president and all these people in the government, I think that they do everything at this moment they have to do. I think that all specific discussions for me personally may come later when we win at the end of the war. But at this moment, I just rely on them because they are people who work now. They stay in cave. They have not left cave. And they do. And I consider they know what they do because it's their job. So that's what I can say. consider they know what they do because it's their job. So that's what I can say. I'm glad that we have these people doing their work. To which extent in details, I say it means that I have to read news in more details and I'm already so tired of reading this news, I'm kind of like started to read some different things. We all hope, and that's my last question, Anna. We all hope that this cruel war will soon be over. And so I would like to invite you from your perspective of the arts field to give us some ideas. Hopefully this war will soon be over. How can Ukrainian society find back to peace, to dialogue? to peace, to dialogue. It's a multicultural country, different languages, different religious backgrounds, different historical contexts. And you're supposed to live together one day again. And what can art or you as an artist contribute to a peaceful further future? Thank you for asking this question. Thank you for mentioning something about after war. That's what, it's not about art, but that's what I would like to start with from my point of view, because I know I have many friends who live in the Western Europe and who live there not after 24th of February but many years they immigrated and lived there for a long time they say that there are people in Western Europe who continue to speak about, like, at the end of the war, we become again friends and shake each other's hands with Russia. And they continue to think that it's kind of like, well, brothers and sisters. And I would like to say, no, it's not like that. And I would like to say, no, it's not like that. And I would like the world to understand that, yes, at the end, we probably continue to live in peace. It means continue to be independent and not invade in Russia as we have were brothers and sisters. We were friends, we were friends. And whether we will become friends again and how soon, you know, after all that massacre that we have now in Ukraine, after all these breaking all rules of wars, like humanitarian corridors, shooting civilians, like all women who survived the Second World War, they say this is worse 10 times because they were in occupied territories of Ukraine under Nazis. And they say now it's 10 times worse. So to speak about what is going to be after we win, after the end, after the end of the war, I don't know now. after we win, after the end, after the end of the war, I don't know now. And I already said how my heart is changing of me, international person, how my heart and my perception of all these things changing. Regarding art, again, it's culture. I already said that how difficult for me now to speak about Russian culture while it was one of the most studied cultures for me. Russian artists and... I'm listening to explosions again. Russian artists, Russian writers, and all this is to put now aside because it's not what I can think right now about. Regarding the end of the war, it's not my job to predict. I'm not a fortune teller. I just can read information from a journalist I trust, like Arkady Babchenko or Alex Sharpe. I can read information that is delivered from the position of also journalists like Hrista Grozev, maybe. I can listen to this. I can make my impression, but i can't make my prediction i just hope that it will end soon because longer it lasts more people are killed it's our nation it's our uh like it's our people. It's like how can we continue to be a nation if we won't have people of Ukrainian nationality? And that's why it is very important for the world to understand that, yes, we appreciate the help of the world very much. I personally appreciate it, but I agree that it should be more steps toward the end of the war together. And I think it should be more steps now done by the Western Europe toward ending this war. And in art, like current art, I know artists who, I have a lot of artist friends. Some of them left Kiev and they can work. And I'm glad that they left Kyiv and they can work. Like, for example, Tatiana Zhivatkova, a very famous Ukrainian watercolor painter, she started to work. She cannot paint. I talked to her. We are friends are friends i have her artwork i purchased from her she had two weeks of absolute inability to do any art she was uh uh she lost her sense and doing art for two weeks but then because she is a true artist and art is life for her it's it's her air to breathe she started to draw she bought pencils she does drawing one of the drawing I also purchased because I want to support artists also because it's her way to earn money and also she donate part of her income to either to army or to volunteers. And I know like Maxim Mazur, I know in person he also in Chernovtsi and he can work. His work is really very touchy because I see that in his abstract art, he kind of interprets the war. And it is good because it's not direct, but I see that he kind of digests by his soul these things. Tatiana cannot. She draws something different. She is more realistic person. She draws objects, people, but it's her way to work. Like another couple of people I see on Facebook, I trace their work, and most of them are not Kyiv. And probably that's why I cannot work. I did a couple of drawings. I can show you like this is my kind of like graffiti for Ukrainian army. Zbrojenye sily Ukrainyi. And one drawing like that. I don't know. Like I tried, but I can't. I realized I can't. So I think it's about me. There is also my very good friend. I know him in person. He organized a group of artists. You can find them on Facebook also and on Telegram. I can share with you later. Art Heat Group. And their audience is Western European or foreign audience because they try to make posters and their kind of visual graphic, infographic for an audience. And they write in English all there. Like if it is poster with words, it's in English. So they target for an audience. They work. They also, by the way, need support. That what I try to sometimes collect money for them also, to support them, because they don't earn. They just work on producing this visual information about the war. So what I know that on Telegram, one of the channel informed us that one woman who owns her private museum, fashion museum, which I have not attended yet, even before the war, she opens its doors this week, today or tomorrow, and she plans to have it a few days per week opened for free now, for free, so that people can, like, maybe, like, that's what to bring people a little bit more to life, maybe to give some culture. So she said, like I read this information, she has a security man and she has someone inside the museum, no guides, only audio guides, but she opened doors to do something to support people and maybe give them chance to because we we need to take care of our souls and that's what also I do I when it is quiet and I can do I take online yoga classes because I know that I have to save my sanity. I have to save my health, physical health. I understand that because people say that if you get sick, you will be just burdened for someone else. And I don't want to be a burden for my husband. I want to be supportive for my husband. So I try to do things that help me to stay the same. Artists, like if I can draw something but I can't be creative at all, especially in Kyiv. Yeah, that sounds really great, Anna. It's impressing regarding your courage and your, I don't know, your will to survive and to keep up normal life during times of war and crisis. So I really can thank you very, very much. It was great to have you with us. And yeah, stay safe, please. And we are all with you and have a nice day again. It was great to have you with us. Stay safe, please. We are all with you. Have a nice day again. Thank you very much. Thank you very much for talking to me. Bye-bye, Anna. Goodbye.