The Firebird

FIREBIRD is a fairy tale/documentary with animation and news footage that updates an old Slavic folk tale to expose today’s men waging war and women carrying the consequences on their back. We want to turn the familiar “Once upon a Time!” of a fairy tale with an unrealistic happy ending into a “Once Upon Today!” a story about a Woman standing up to the war machine - a new folklore for the next generation.

Irina Patkanian - writer, director, editor (Russia/NYC)

 Marion Schoevaert - lead artist, director (France/NYC)

 Maxim & Irina Dondyuk - renowned art photographer (Ukraine)  https://maximdondyuk.com/
A renowned Ukrainian art photographer, working with video, text, and archival material. He has won numerous awards, including International Photographer of the Year in Lucie Awards, Magnum Photos competition; and exhibited widely incl. the Musée d’Art Moderne in Paris.

Yevgenia Nayberg – artist/illustrator/theater designer (Ukraine/ NYC) https://nayberg.org
Born and raised in Kyiv, Ukraine, she has published many books, and has many awards, incl. the NEA/TCG Fellowship, the Independent Theatre Award, the Arlin Meyer Award, three Sydney Taylor Medals, a Library Guild Gold Selection Award, and many others.

Vlada Tomova, composer, vocalist (Ukraine/Bulgaria/Russia/NYC) www.vladatomovamusic.com
Born in Ukraine, Vlada holds a Voice Performance degree from Berklee College of Music. She is the Musical Director of acclaimed NYC Balkan Tales; Yasna Voices and New York's Bulgarian Women's Choir (Bulgarian Voices Trio, Songs of the Spice Road).

Elena Kalkova, Visual editing (Russia/NYC)
is a multimedia artist and researcher of Eastern European Art History. she explores feminism and construction of gender in the Post-Soviet space. Artist, MFA School of Visual Art.

Featuring Ksena Samborska as Firebird