fiction series
TAGLINE: Search for answers in the past.
This mystery crime noir series takes place in the Ukrainian Polissya. The setting of the whole story is swamps, ancient beliefs, and amber. A body with signs of ritualistic murder is found near the amber mining pits. Olga, who came to investigate the case, immediately realizes that almost all residents are involved in illegal business. She finds an ally – a smuggler from Latvia, Erik, who is engaged in the stone industry. Erik tells her about the alliance of the local mayor Olzhych (Ольжич), the abbot of the monastery, and the woodsman, Mal Niskina (Мал Ніскина). But their agreement was violated when a murder took place. Three allies launch a war for territories.
Meanwhile, rumors about the return of Pesyholovets (Песиголовця) spread around the town, and the murders continue. Every character hides secrets of the past. And only by revealing those secrets, as well as revisiting her childhood, Olga will manage to find out who is the murderer and what is their motivation. People's destinies are woven into a web of events that began almost a thousand years ago when the Drevlian idol cut from one piece of amber was lost.
PROJECT TEAM
MYROSLAV LATYK, scriptwriter
EDUCATION
1998-2001 Faculty of Journalism
Ivan Franko National University of Lviv
2001-2006 Faculty of Film Directing
Karpenko-Kary National University of Theatre, Film, and TV
FILMOGRAPHY
Short films:
• 2003 – Postfactum, screenwriter, director. Official selection of the Molodist Kyiv International Film Festival, received a special mention at the Open Night International Short Film Festival
• 2012 – MANU 18347, screenwriter, director. Grand Prix of the Open Night International Short Film Festival.
TV series:
• 2011 – Stringer (Стрінгер), director.
• 2013 – Relish (Захват), director.
• 2015 – 5baksiv.net, screenwriter, director. First Ukrainian web series (co-created by BBC Media Action). Grand Prix and the award for Best Director at the BilbaoWebFest 2016.
• 2021 – Big City Wizard (Чарівник великого міста), screenwriter, director.
Feature films:
• 2019 – A Five Bucks Mishap (Халепа на 5 баксів), screenwriter, director.
• 2020 – Kings of Rap, screenwriter, director. Odesa IFF 2021 opening film. Official selection of Kinokolo 2021, Mykolaychuk OPEN 2022, Vittorio Veneto Film Festival 2022, and Cottbus 2022.
• 2021 – Maksym Osa, screenwriter, director. Official selection of the Fear Faire Film Festival, South California, the USA.
OKSANA IVANYUK, producer
Education:
1990-1995 – Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, Faculty of Sociology and Psychology.
2008-2010 – Higher Course of Screenwriting and Directing curated by Aleksandr Rodnyansky.
Since 2011, Oksana has been a co-founder and the chief producer of a production studio, IQ Group.
Produced:
TV SERIES
- Great Feelings (Великі почуття)
- Sydórenky-Sydorénky (Сидоренки-Сидоренки )
- A House for Happiness (Будиночок на щастя)
- Cossacks. Absolutely Flase Story (Козаки. Абсолютно брехлива історія). The series was sold to Poland, the USA, Canada, and Israel. This is the first Ukrainian series screened in cinemas, which was also nominated for the Ukrainian Film Academy Award and won the award for Film Specific Logo from Promax BDO.
- Romeo and Juliet from Cherkasy
- A Fortune Teller (Ворожка)
- Big City Wizard (Чарівник великого міста)
DOCUMENTARY FILMS
- Plai. Directed by Eva Dzhyshyashvili. Grand Prix of Docudays UA; OneWorld, Bucharest, Romania; Sheffield Doc/Fest, UK; Doc Valencia, Spain; Cervino CineMountain, Italy; DOKLeipzig, Germany.