We care about the well-being of Ukrainian children abroad

We care about the well-being, mental health, and development of Ukrainian children abroad. That’s why we have happily joined the project organized by Kulttuuriyhdistämö Interkult (Kassandra ry), funded by Svenska kulturfonden.

The Let’s Film and Action course is meant for Ukrainian teenagers to let them learn about the process of filmmaking and practice their skills.

The course was conducted by Paola Guzmán Figueroa, Colombian-Finnish visual artist and filmmaker, and Theo af Enehielm, Finnish film director, sound editor and scriptwriter: ”We were very impressed with the dedication and openness of the kids who all brought their ideas and effort. A highlight of the course was to see how proud the kids were at the screening. We are very grateful to have shared this experience with this group and hope to continue if the possibility comes.”

As a result of the course, three short films were made. These were presented on May 18 2024 at Orion Cinema: Class 1999 (5 min), Unreflectable Mirror (5 min), Behind the Scenes (10 min).

Iryna Gorkun, cultural projects coordinator of Ukrainalaisten yhdistys Suomessa ry / Ukrainian Association in Finland: “It was wonderful to see children’s happy faces at the film screening. They were both excited and looked proud of themselves for the job they have done. During the screening I could hear their voices, whispering jokes, commenting on the film and laughing. I have heard that children have been asking to have more courses like this so I hope that together with Interkult we will be able to offer something like this in the future”.

Maya Furtatova, mother of student Vlad Furtatov: “Indeed, it was a great experience for the children. They were excited about the course! Our children in Helsinki are lucky to have those people nearby who help them feel happy far from home”.

Special thank you to Andreas Af Enehielm from Kulttuuriyhdistämö Interkult, Victoria Kononchuk from Ukrainalainen keskus (Ukrainalaisten yhdistys Suomessa ry) and Nataliya Teramae, Ukrainalaisten yhdistys Suomessa ry / Ukrainian Association in Finland.

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