‘Thank you, Russia!’: British director gets confused at Odesa International Film Festival

The famous British film director Terry Gilliam mistakenly thanked Russia instead of Ukraine after receiving the Golden Duke award for his contribution to the world cinematography at the Odesa International Film Festival on Aug. 21.

“Thank you, Russia! Thank you, Odesa!” Gilliam, 80, said from the stage. 

The festival’s president Viktoriya Tigipko, standing near Gilliam, smiled and told the director: “Ukraine, it’s Ukraine.”

One of the festival’s hosts, TV personality Yanina Sokolova, was more brusque: She interrupted the director’s speech and reminded him that Odesa was in Ukraine.