Awesome Ukraine

Who woulda thought that actress Vera Farmiga could/would sing a goth-metal song with Gogol Bordello frontman Eugene Hütz? Turns out that Vera fronts her own rock band, The Yagas, and that she and Eugene share Ukrainian roots. They recently collaborated for a live performance of Chervona Ruta, one of Vera’s favorite Ukrainian songs.

Under roaring fighter jets and missile strikes, three Ukrainian artists choose to fight by defiantly finding beauty amid destruction. Through art, they show that although it’s easy to make people afraid, it’s hard to destroy their passion for living. Beautifully shot and vividly evocative, this documentary makes the spirit soar as it breaks your heart.

Coffee grounds aren’t easy to dispose of in an eco-friendly way. A startup in Kyiv, Ukraine, came up with a clever use for the waste – eyeglass frames. Business Insider shows us how OCHIS combine the grounds with plant oils and other sustainable elements, presses them until solid, then cuts them into eyeglass parts.

In the summer of 2021, photographer Joerg Daiber visited Ukraine and captured footage of Kyiv at the peak of normalcy. While life has changed dramatically for the people of this great nation and its capital city, this footage stands as a reminder of better days and inspiration for peace to return to the country.

After making a splash on the international film festival circuit in 2019, Valentyn Vasyanovych’s Atlantis has a U.S. distributor. Set in 2025, the film offers a glimpse into a future where Ukraine defeats Russia, and where people struggle to live and love in a desolate and dystopian world.