Ігор Ігнатович відвідав Львів щоб презентувати стрічку "Гіркі жнива" - першу англомовну художню стрічку, в основу якої лягли трагічні події Голодомору 1932-33 років. Вранці відбулася зустріч з паном Ігорем в Актовій залі головного корпусу НУ "Львівська політехніка", а ввечері у кінотеатрі "Планета Кіно" (ТРЦ "Форум Львів") презентували епічну драму, яку покажуть ще у понад 40 країнах світу.
About the Film
"Bitter Harvest" is a Canadian film about the Ukrainian tragedy - the Holodomor of 1932-1933, starring British actors in the lead roles. This film tells the story of the life and love of an ordinary young man, Yuriy, whose life is drastically changed during the terrible years of 1932-1933, and about the struggle of the proud Ukrainian people against Stalin's repressions. The closed premiere of the film took place at the "American Film Market" festival for film distributors at the end of 2015. In 2016, the film was presented at the Berlinale and the Cannes Film Festival.
This is the first full-length English-language project on the topic of the Holodomor, featuring Hollywood actors in the lead roles, as well as Ostap Stupka and Oleksandr Pecheritsa. "A film about love, honor, and the resilience of a nation" - describe the film its creators.
The film is primarily aimed at a Western audience. In addition to restoring historical truth, the film aims to help understand today's Ukraine. Through the film, the authors sought to convey why Ukraine has always opposed totalitarianism and why it has experienced so many revolutions.
In the lead roles are Hollywood actors of the "new generation": playing Yuriy is the heir to an acting dynasty, Max Irons. His beloved Natalia is played by Samantha Barks, star of the latest adaptation of "Les Misérables". Yuriy's grandfather is Barry Pepper ("Saving Private Ryan", "The Green Mile"), his father is Terence Stamp ("Star Wars: Episode I", "The Hitman", "Valkyrie"). The role of the red commander is played by Tamer Hassan, who appeared in "Game of Thrones".
In the film, American and British actors wear vyshyvankas, sing Ukrainian songs, fight against the NKVD, and defend the rights of Ukrainians. Ukrainian actors play Ukrainian peasants and speak English. "If the actors are cast correctly, the director's job is simply to step back and not interfere," says the film's director. And this time, according to him, it was just like that.
The film's budget is $20 million – the personal savings of Yan Ihnatovych, for whom this is his first experience in film production. If the film's release is successful, he does not rule out that he will consider bringing other Ukrainian stories to the screen.
For the creators of the film, this is a very personal story. Director George (Yuriy) Mendelyuk conveyed in the film the story of his family. The story of the heroes is well known to the producer, director, and screenwriter – descendants of Ukrainian emigrants.
About Ihor Ihnatovych
Ihor Ihnatovych was born in 1952 in Canada, an entrepreneur, patron, public figure, a Canadian of Ukrainian descent, whose grandmother, grandfather, and mother lived in Vynnyky in Lviv region. His Ukrainian parents were forced to flee their homeland from Stalin's terror to Canada, many relatives were shot.
Yan Ihnatovych is engaged in business in the field of investment and medical technologies. He is the founder and president of "Acuity Funds", a firm that has become one of Canada's leading and long-standing socially responsible firms, and the first Canadian firm invited to advise the United Nations on integrating social, environmental, and financial factors with investment management.
He made a significant donation for the restoration of the historic building of the Royal Conservatory in Toronto, which was renamed "Ihnatowycz Hall", and established scholarships for advanced pianists. He donated to the establishment of the "Ihnatowycz Institute for Leadership" at the "Richard Ivey School of Business" and the studies department at this institute.
As co-chair of a successful company, he raised $10 million for the development of the Ukrainian Care Home in Toronto. He initiated and partially funded the reconstruction plan of the Plast camp at the Toronto branch. He supports various educational, musical, and artistic institutions.
Understanding that the tragedy of the Holodomor in Ukraine is completely unknown in the Western world due to a lack of information and English-language films about this terrible chapter of Ukrainian history, Yan Ihnatovych decided to finance the new English-language film "Bitter Harvest", with a budget of 20 million dollars.
References used: http://zik.ua/news/2017/02/22/prodyus... http://galinfo.com.ua/news/prodyuser_...
