20 Days in Mariupol: A harrowing testament to journalism and truth

Directed by war correspondent Mstyslav Chernov, the film opens with a view from a window - smoke billowing over the buildings opposite. A figure emerges in front of the camera, clutching a camera and donning a cap emblazoned with the word "press". On the other side of the apartment, through another window, a tank marked with a Z, a symbol of Russian aggression, is visible. More and more tanks encircle the hospital, where hundreds of patients are housed.

"Someone told me: 'Wars don't start with explosions but with silence,'" the narrator recounts. However, in "20 Days in Mariupol," moments of silence are scarce. Each sound could signal an impending attack or its aftermath, including screams and lamentations.

The military base in Mariupol, at the doorstep of Crimea, was obliterated on the first day of the war. Journalists were aware that this port, an industrial city, would be among the first targets. They had been there eight years earlier when Russia annexed Crimea using equally forceful methods.

Accompanied by camera operator Evgeniy Maloletka, they come across a panicked woman walking her dog. Distressed about her son, who had gone to work unaware of the war's outbreak, she doesn't know what to do. The journalist advises her to calmly head home and take shelter in the basement, reassuring her that civilians wouldn’t be targeted. "I was wrong. An hour later, missiles rained down on that district," he adds off-screen.

Within two days, a quarter of the city's population had fled. Chernov traces the paths of those who remained. Some, typically the elderly or mothers with young children, attempt to weather the storm in shelters. The rest, mainly healthcare workers and conscripted men, are on the front line.

The filmmaker does not spare his viewers, presenting shocking images of dismembered bodies, children being resuscitated, despair, and the fury of doctors, nurses, and parents. "Show this to that scumbag Putin! Show him the eyes of this child and the tears of the doctors," shouts one of the medics to the camera. At that time, Russian media was claiming that the slain patients were hired actors.

While such drastic footage may have become commonplace in media, often failing to elicit the appropriate reactions, in this instance, the battle is for the truth, which cannot be distorted by Russian propaganda.

Thanks to Mstyslav Chernov's photos, the world became aware of the Russian military's raid on the maternity and children's hospital in Mariupol. The film documents more war crimes. Mass graves are also revealed.

Although "20 Days in Mariupol" conveys the brutality vividly, it is an exemplar of committed journalism amidst warfare. This work, along with other pieces by the Ukrainian correspondent, has been recognized with the Pulitzer Prize. The production has garnered awards at the most prestigious documentary festivals: IDFA, Sundance, CPH:Dox, and is also vying for an Oscar.

The Western world, in this manner, expresses its refusal to remain indifferent, refusing to leave Ukrainians to confront Putin's Russia alone. There’s no illusion that the film can alter the course of the war, but there's no doubt that for many viewers globally, Chernov's production will serve as an important account of a history that must not be repeated.