Niki (12 years old) and Vika (11 years old) meet for the first time in the metro of Kharkiv, where their families have taken refuge from the war. This documentary is an unexpected and touching love story that reminds us that empathy, generosity, and hope in other people are the only things that can save humanity in times of great crisis, and war. The Photophobia screening marks 2 years since the beginning of the war in Ukraine and will take place on February 24th at Elvire Popesco.

Tickets are available on Eventbook.

Photophobia is the first warm-up screening for the One World Romania #17 festival. Early bird passes for the festival are on sale on Eventbook.

PHOTOPHOBIA
Director: Ivan Ostrochovský, Pavol Pekarčík
Documentary - Slovakia, Czech Republic, Ukraine - 2023 - 1h10 - Original language Ukrainian, Russian with Romanian and English subtitles

Synopsis:
On a cold February morning, 12-year-old Niki and his family arrive at a metro station in Kharkiv to shelter from the terror of the war outside. For Niki's family, daylight means the possibility of death. The boy is not allowed to leave the station, where he lives under the continuous glow of neon lights. Wandering among abandoned carriages and platforms, Niki meets Vika (11 years old), and a new world opens up before him. As their bond grows stronger, the two children find the courage once again to let the sun shine on their faces.

Awards and festivals: Europa Cinemas Label Award in the Giornate degli Autori section, Venice Film Festival 2023

Trailer:  here

The screening is organized with the support of EUNIC Romania and is part of the International Literature Festival Odessa (ILO) program, the 9th edition, which takes place at the Goethe Institute in Bucharest from February 22nd to 25th, 2024. This is the first time Bucharest hosts the International Literature Festival from Odessa, a literary event launched in 2015, which, due to the war, has become itinerant.