“My brain desperately wants to forget all of this. But the camera will not let it happen.”  Mstyslav Chernov

20 days in Mariupol tells the story of the first twenty days of the siege of Mariupol. 

An AP team of Ukrainian journalists trapped in the besieged city of Mariupol struggle to continue their work documenting atrocities of the Russian invasion. As the only international reporters who remain in the city, they capture what later become defining images of the war.

After nearly a decade covering international conflicts, including the Russia-Ukraine war, for The Associated Press, 20 DAYS IN MARIUPOL is Mstyslav Chernov’s first feature film. The film draws on Chernov’s daily news dispatches and personal footage of his own country at war. It offers a vivid, harrowing account of civilians caught in the siege, as well as a window into what it’s like to report from a conflict zone, and the impact of such journalism around the globe.

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“A brave, visceral, merciless masterpiece ...

feels like a cinematic siege of the soul."  

Ed Vulliamy, The Guardian

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