The citizens and the guests of Odesa, a port city in southern Ukraine, attend the Odesa International Film Festival screening of 1928 silent film “The Cossacks,” accompanied by an orchestra, at Odesa’s giant stairway, Potemkin Stairs, on July 13, 2019.
Most Ukrainian directors dream of having their film’s local debut at the annual Odesa International Film Festival, the country’s most influential cinematic event.
Many of those dreams were crushed last year due to the COVID19 pandemic, and although the festival had a successful online run in 2020, its offline return this year is much anticipated.