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	In 2015, following the ], the militsiya was disbanded and replaced with the ].<ref name="ReutersMilitsiya" /> By September 2015, the Interior Ministry had officially launched its own Ukrainian Sheriffs program, replacing district militsiya officers with newly trained police officers, instructed to develop relationships with every family in the villages and small towns of their districts.<ref name="Police2015" /><ref name = "UATnumbers" />		In 2015, following the ], the militsiya was disbanded and replaced with the ].<ref name="ReutersMilitsiya" /> By September 2015, the Interior Ministry had officially launched its own Ukrainian Sheriffs program, replacing district militsiya officers with newly trained police officers, instructed to develop relationships with every family in the villages and small towns of their districts.<ref name="Police2015" /><ref name = "UATnumbers" />
	<!--


	hinterland

	A southern Ukrainian village near the Black Sea, 70 km from Crimea, a poor but supposedly ideal world, whose residents are used to organizing their village under self-government without federal help.<ref name="ARD" />

	out of the way farming settlement of 1800 people.<ref name = "Young2015" /> A little over a half-hour into the film, a vote in the Crimean peninsula sees it become a de facto part of Russia.<ref name = "Young2015" />

	homeless man Kolya and his wife Tanya.<ref name = "Trimbach2016" />


	After the end of filming, Viktor and Volodya are elected as deputies of the village council.<ref name = "Oliynyk2015" />


	In March 2022, the ] including Staraya Zburivka. Marunyak, an outspoken advocate for peace and democracy, held pro-Ukrainian rallies and hid activists in his home. On 21 March, he was taken prisoner by Russian special forces (]), who destroyed his house and refused to bring his medication for a chronic illness. He was one of more than fifty local leaders who were detained in an attempt to subdue the occupied territories. After 23 days of captivity, Marunyak was released with pneumonia and nine broken ribs, which he told the ] were due to water torture and beatings. Marunyak was hospitalized for ten days before escaping to Ukrainian-controlled territory.<ref name="Mayors2022" /><ref name="Ramachandran2022" />




	Different ethnic groups.<ref name = "Trimbach2016" />
	The village once had a Cossack settlement.<ref name = "Oliynyk2015" />

	During filming, Crimea was annexed and the war in Donbas began, affecting the mood in the village.<ref name = "Oliynyk2015" />
	-->

	== Synopsis ==		== Synopsis ==
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	<!--		<!--
	Moments of village life are shown throughout the film. Rudkovsky's young daughter is baptized. Kryvoborodko takes his son Nikita fishing on the nearby lake. A funeral is held for a destitute woman. Kolya makes ] over an open fire. The village men immerse themselves in the icy lake on the ]. In the spring, boys race across floating ice on a pond.		Moments of village life are shown throughout the film. Rudkovsky's young daughter is baptized. Kryvoborodko takes his son Nikita fishing on the nearby lake. A funeral is held for a destitute woman. Kolya makes ] over an open fire. The village men immerse themselves in the icy lake on the ]. In the spring, boys race across floating ice on a pond.


	A man who has suffered repeated thefts of ducks and associated damage agrees to pay fuel expenses for the militsiya to come and investigate.
	-->		-->

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	]		]
	The mood in the village changes with the seriousness of the war. The Sheriffs become less popular as they have to deliver registration notices for the ],<ref name="ARD" /><ref name="Warszawa2016" /> which is met with some resistance.<ref name = "Jarymowycz2018" /> Rudkovsky is concerned that he might be on the draft list despite a shoulder injury. While many say that they will fight if the enemy comes from Crimea, most don't want to be sent to fight in Donbas and one man plans to emigrate to Germany. There is excitement when a military convoy passes through the village; Kryvoborodko has his young son Nikita pose for pictures in fatigues with an assault rifle.<ref name = "Jarymowycz2018" /> When the sheriffs deliver a draft notice to Serhiy's home, they discover that he has fled the village. They find the recipient of another draft notice dead in his home from apparent violence, and call the militsiya to begin a criminal investigation.		The mood in the village changes with the seriousness of the war. The Sheriffs become less popular as they have to deliver registration notices for the ],<ref name="ARD" /><ref name="Warszawa2016" /> which is met with some resistance.<ref name = "Jarymowycz2018" /> Rudkovsky is concerned that he might be on the draft list despite a shoulder injury. While many say that they will fight if the enemy comes from Crimea, most don't want to be sent to fight in Donbas and one man plans to emigrate to Germany. There is excitement when a military convoy passes through the village; Kryvoborodko has his young son Nikita pose for pictures in fatigues with an assault rifle.<ref name = "Jarymowycz2018" /> When the sheriffs deliver a draft notice to Serhiy's home, they discover that he has fled the village. They find the recipient of another draft notice dead in his home from apparent violence, and call the militsiya to begin a criminal investigation.

	<!--

	They decide that they won't surrender their car to the enemy.




	Nikita, Kryvoborodko's son.
	-->
	The Sheriffs discover that their tiny television has been stolen. Kryvoborodko loses his temper as he detains a belligerent woman who admits to stealing it but won't cooperate.

	Kryvoborodko turns Kolya in to the police for stealing a bicycle and selling it to a junkyard, and Kolya receives a {{frac\|3\|1\|2}} year prison sentence.<ref name = "Jarymowycz2018"/> The sheriffs both have misgivings, Rudkovsky thinking they could have handled it themselves and Kryvoborodko acknowledging that prison never made anyone a better person. They're uncertain what should be done with Kolya's wife Tanya, who can only do simple tasks and may not be able to support herself. She reads a letter from Kolya and speaks to his better qualities.		Kryvoborodko turns Kolya in to the police for stealing a bicycle and selling it to a junkyard, and Kolya receives a {{frac\|3\|1\|2}} year prison sentence.<ref name = "Jarymowycz2018"/> The sheriffs both have misgivings, Rudkovsky thinking they could have handled it themselves and Kryvoborodko acknowledging that prison never made anyone a better person. They're uncertain what should be done with Kolya's wife Tanya, who can only do simple tasks and may not be able to support herself. She reads a letter from Kolya and speaks to his better qualities.

	After much preparation, the village holds its 9th of May victory celebrations.{{efn\|The Soviet republics commemorated Soviet victory over Nazi Germany on 9 May as ]. In 2015, Ukraine changed its observance to ], which was later moved to 8 May as ] with 9 May observed as ] alongside the European Union.}} The mayor speaks of the new war with the new enemy, and the need for those drafted to serve in the military,<ref name = "Jarymowycz2018" /> as a half-dozen villagers have already done. Vova is seen wearing fatigues, suggesting that he has achieved an official position in public service.<ref name = "Jarymowycz2018" />		After much preparation, the village holds its 9th of May victory celebrations.{{efn\|The Soviet republics commemorated Soviet victory over Nazi Germany on 9 May as ]. In 2015, Ukraine changed its observance to ], which was later moved to 8 May as ] with 9 May observed as ] alongside the European Union.}} The mayor speaks of the new war with the new enemy, and the need for those drafted to serve in the military,<ref name = "Jarymowycz2018" /> as a half-dozen villagers have already done. Vova is seen wearing fatigues, suggesting that he has achieved an official position in public service.<ref name = "Jarymowycz2018" />
	<!--















	The sheriffs call on Kolya and his wife Tanya.

	Kryvoborodko takes illiterate Vova to the militsya station for a meeting with his parole officer.

	Vova and Kolya clean garbage in a park as part of their community service. They find a log and carry it to their homes for their first winter fuel. thinking of the future.

	Mayor Marunyak meets with Kolya who explains his ambitions to be respected and accepted, to have his own home, garden and family, a shed and a small greenhouse. Habit of eating dogs in the past, saying that dog and raccoon fat prevents tuberculosis.

	Kryvoborodko takes his son fishing on the estuary.

	Marunyak suggests Kolya move into his family home. The home of his brother Pavlo Mikolayovich, transferring the property to Kolya. He immediately begins tidying the yard of weeds and refuse, while the neighbours vocally complain of the "pretty picture" of a alcoholic wife-beating thief and jailbird moving in.

	A man who has had repeated theft of ducks pays for the militsya to come.

	Kolya makes preserves.

	Serhiy, at the end of a village council meeting, makes an announcement of a new group "Community of Stara Zburjivka". He notes that the Constitution only gives rights to humans and citizens, but many people do not have papers to prove their citizenship. Their goals are: implementation of the will, the rights and freedoms of a human, assurance of a legal basis for the direct government and democracy of humans, the residents of Stara Zburjivka. No taxes to the corrupt administrations. Has only 14 members.

	Russian World, 140 nationalities living in Rus' without being destroyed or enslaved.

	Receive news of the Crimean vote.

	A funeral.

	He speaks again at the village club and is largely shouted down and ridiculed by the villagers, who stand with the mayor.

	The mayor can't accept that 14 people can elect an ombudsman of the community. Accuses him of trying to split the village. He invites them to stand for village election, but has had enough of his comedy.

	Serhiy is later shown starting up and flying a powered paraglider around the watchtower.

	Reports of the war in Donbas, declaration of the Donetsk People's Republic, requests for Russian troops.

	A Christmas ceremony

	The militsiya hold a ceremony to give Kryvoborodko a diploma in recognition of his professionalism and contributions to the fight against crime.

	The sheriffs decide they won't give up their car if the separatists/Russians come. They are tasked with delivering draft notices but meet resistance.

	All of Kolya's cousins have been in jail and his brother murdered their father.

	While delivering a draft notice, they find the recipient dead in his home. It looks suspicious and they call the militsiya. He worked in the fields and could disappear for months at a time.

	The mayor's grapes have been ruined by a

	Men submerge themselves in ice-cold water on the epiphany.

	Nikita, Kryvoborodko's son.

	Rudkovsky is worried that he might be on the draft list, though he believes they won't take him because he has only partial mobility in one shoulder.

	They go to deliver a draft notice to Serhiy but find he's left town. The Sheriffs return to their station house to discover that their tiny TV set has been stolen. Rousts up a woman named Lena

	Boys running on broken floating ice.

	9th of May celebration preparation.

	Kolya is sentenced to 3 1/2 years for bicycle theft.

	Food drive and schoolchildren's letters for the soldiers.

	Passing soldiers, sends his son to have a look. Holding a rifle with a vest and cap. not sure what happened, owner saw stolen bicycle in a junkyard, victor called the police right away. Everyone knew it was Kolya but he thingks they could have dealt with it themselves. They're uncertain what to do with Tanya, who can't do much and only slowly.

	Tanya gets a letter from Nikolai Kolya. He is ok, at Daryevska jail, where his brother used to be.

	Victor notes that jail has never made anyone a better person. Kolya was the master of his own destiny.

	The mayor's grapes are ruined by the frost.

	Victory celebration conincides iwth a ner war, new enemy. five villatgers in the war, a sixth already returned.

	9th of may celebration.

	Watchtower has been summoned to the recruitment office, says he won't go.









	The sheriffs explain that there are a number of vagrants in the village with no home or identity papers.




	After Halushka it was Yurka.






	Sheriffs Viktor Kryvoborodko and Volodymyr Rudkovsky

	1973 yellow ] sedan.<ref name = "Halligan2015" />




	<ref name = "Halligan2015" />



	Follows Sheriffs Viktor (50) and Volodya (44).<ref name = "Oliynyk2015" /> Viktor aspired to a military career during the Soviet era; he later developed health problems and returned to the village on a pension. Volodya is a former bouncer and security guard, pig farmer.<ref name="ARD" />


	They find a man who overstayed the winter has been threatening an old man with an axe. The man wants his passport so he can leave, but the old man is holding it for damages the man did to his house. The Sheriffs settle it by paying for a local handyman to fix the door and an agreement is made to return the documents, settling the matter before it escalates further.<ref name = "Oliynyk2015" />

	A pro-Russian activist espousing revisionist Russian World philosophy{{efn\|The pro-Russian activist promotes Russian World philosophy, an alternate history in which the country of Rus extended from the Great Wall of China to the North Sea.<ref name = "Oliynyk2015" /> This false history combines the Mongolian Empire }} calls for political separation from Ukraine to create an independent "community of people" and begins issuing "human passports", but the villagers denounce this outsider and remain loyal to Marunyak.<ref name = "Oliynyk2015" />

	Bathe in icy water on the Epiphany.<ref name = "Oliynyk2015" />

	The political struggle of the Maidan in distant Kyiv is removed from the village, but tensions with Russia loom closer. As the village prepares to celebrate the 70th anniversary of victory over the Nazis, the sheriffs have to deliver draft notices due to the war in the Donbas.<ref name="ARD" />



	A woman complains about a neighbour who has opened a tavern and brothel, and put an anaconda in her firewood shed.

	A number of hobos have moved into the village, settled by the sheriffs in vacant buildings. Some of them are on probation and the sheriffs supervise their community service. One such man moves into the home of his recently deceased brother, with aspirations of making a farm of his own. But the neighbours loudly complain as he works to clear the weeds. Nikolai Nikolayovych


	The sheriffs are concerned about Kolya, who does community service labour for a crime and is on the edge of institutionalization. The sheriffs monitor and guide him, but he is ultimately imprisoned for stealing. The Sheriffs must then find a way for Tatiana, Kolya's common-law wife, to support herself.<ref name = "Jarymowycz2018"/>


	A man has had repeated damage to his home and theft of livestock; he agrees to pay the police to come, to cover their fuel expense.


	The spectre of war threatens societal breakdown and the Sheriffs, as the only representatives of law and order, must keep social order from breaking down.<ref name="Warszawa2016" />


	humans documents
	Serhiy Lazare revych
	jeered

	drafts winter

	arrests a woman for stealing the sheriff's tv.

	9 may 70th


	Sanka son in fatigures

	Kolya is sentenced to 3.5 years for bicycle theft. xxx canned the police right away but xxx thinks they shoulud have settled it themselves.

	Kolya older sherriff or mayor?

	man with a paratrooper tattoo says he won't go to the draft.

	1973 yellow ] sedan.<ref name = "Halligan2015" />

	Stara Zburjivka feels displaced in time, a hinterland agricultural village with a cozy yet diverse population that knows everyone else's business.

	Theft of a bicycle, ducks, and the sheriffs' own TV, and alcohol and drug abuse.<ref name = "Halligan2015" />

	Kolya has a tendencey to eat his neighbours' dogs and is widely unpopular, though he longs for acceptance.<ref name = "Halligan2015" />

	The Sheriffs are retired policemen.<ref name = "Halligan2015" />


	--><!-- old --><!--


	Due to a lack of police presence in the Ukrainian village of {{ interlanguage link \| Stara Zburyivka\|uk\| Стара Збур'ївка }}, ] Viktor Vasylyovych Marunyak assigns the task of protecting the peace to two locals, Viktor Kryvoborodko, aged 50, and Volodymyr Rudkovsky, aged 44. Kryvoborodko and Rudkovsky's work combines the functions of police officers and social workers, as they are tasked with mediating disputes, but not with investigating criminal offenses. The beginning of the ] (2014- ) changes their routine, however - village politics become divided, and the sheriffs are tasked with supporting the Ukrainian war-effort.


	Set between 2013 and 2015, filmed during the Euromaidan and following conflict, far from the protests and violence dominating media coverage
	In the village of Stara Zburjivka, population 1800, near Crimea. The villagers are consumed with local issues but the national events filter into their realities. The filmmakers follow two sheriffs, Victor and Volodya, as they resolve disturbances around the village – from reports of an anaconda in a shed to a drunken dispute between a landlord and tenant. The main protagonists approach their jobs with a sincere desire to help local residents and maintain order in the village.<ref name = "Jarymowycz2018" />

	Appointed by the mayor, they act as the first point of contact for residents reporting crimes, working to resolve issues before reporting them to police.

	A young man named Serhiy enters the village gatherings, calling to resist the corrupt government and form an independent "village community", echoing rhetoric in Crimea and Donbas. Draft notices appear and the sheriffs attempt to round up village men called upon to serve. Distant radio reports on the conflict are received in a watchtower by Slavik (who?). There is tension over heeding or resisting the draft calls; the mayor proclaims that the anniversary of ] coincides with a new war and those called must serve. An army battalion passes through causing excitement; Victor's young son poses for pictures in camouflage with a rifle. During the VD ceremony, Vova, who had been doing community service for a crime, is wearing fatigues, suggesting redemption.<ref name = "Jarymowycz2018" />

	During the film, the sheriffs are repeatedly concerned with Kolya, a small time criminal living in a shack and doing community service. The sheriffs monitor him and rehabilitate him into the village, and he is determined to stay out of prison and start anew, but he is ultimately imprisoned for stealing. The sheriffs are then left supporting his common-law wife Tatiana, who has trouble finding employment. Volodya remarks that the matter could have been resolved without the police, reflecting a common sentiment that citizen action is a useful alternative to state structures which can do more harm than good.<ref name = "Jarymowycz2018" />


	The national police, ],{{efn \| The ] was a law enforcement agency formed in 1919 under the ] and was involved in Soviet repressions. In post-Soviet Ukraine, it was largely seen as corrupt, harsh and out-of-touch with the people. In 2015, following the ], it was disbanded and replaced with the ].<ref name="ReutersMilitsiya" />}}
	-->
	== Featured cast ==		== Featured cast ==

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	A final cut of 88 minutes was assembled by Bondarchuk and co-editor Kateryna Gornostai, with sound by Borys Peter and original music by Anton Baibakov.<ref name = "Young2015"/> A 52-minute edit was made for television.<ref name = "Halligan2015" /> Dialogue is in Russian and Ukrainian.<ref name = "Jarymowycz2018" />		A final cut of 88 minutes was assembled by Bondarchuk and co-editor Kateryna Gornostai, with sound by Borys Peter and original music by Anton Baibakov.<ref name = "Young2015"/> A 52-minute edit was made for television.<ref name = "Halligan2015" /> Dialogue is in Russian and Ukrainian.<ref name = "Jarymowycz2018" />
	<!--


	It was filmed from 2013 to 2015<ref name = "Jarymowycz2018" /> under filmmaker Roman Bondarchuk, who served as director, cinematographer and co-editor.<ref name = "Young2015" />

	director/cinematographer/co-editor Roman Bondarchuk. Six European channels were involved in its production. <ref name = "Young2015" />

	Produced by Uldis Cekulis for VFS Films (Latvia), DocuDays South, Taskovski Films. Screenwriter Darya Averchenko. Produvers Averchenko, Uldis Cekulis, Tania Georgieva. Editors Bondarchuk, Kateryna Gornostai. Sound Borys Peter. Composder Anton Baibakov. 88 minutes.<ref name = "Young2015" />

	A 52-minute edit was made for television.<ref name = "Halligan2015" />

	In Russian and Ukrainian.<ref name = "Jarymowycz2018" />

	Ukraine Latvia Germany production.<ref name = "Halligan2015" />


	Filmed from 2013 to 2015<ref name = "Jarymowycz2018" />
	''Ukrainian Sheriffs'' was filmed over four years,<ref name="Oliynyk2015" /> with nearly 200 hours of footage covering the sheriffs' investigations, duties, and daily lives. This was initially edited into small episodes with a first cut that was five hours in length and remained over two hours in length until its sixth cut.<ref name="IDFA-kill" />

	The film received support from the IDFA Bertha Fund (Eastern Europe), <ref name = "IDFA-kill" />


	According to producer Daryna Averchenko, the film is a story about how people organized themselves to deal with a societal need – policing – without waiting for higher authority to provide instructions.<ref name = "Oliynyk2015" />

	Made in 2014, in parallel with the Maidan and the Russian annexation of Crimea.<ref name="ARD" />


	The film was workshopped and developed with the guidance of expert documentary creators at the IDFAcademy 2014 Summer School, organized by the ] (IDFA).<ref name = "DFF" />


	-->
	== Release ==		== Release ==

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	''Ukrainian Sheriffs'' received distribution support from the IDFA Bertha Fund, and was released throughout Ukraine in July 2016, then to the Baltic and Balkan regions in September.<ref name=Božanic /> The film's television premiere took place on 1 April 2016 on the Franco-German channel ].<ref name="ARD" /><ref name = "YakutenkoReview" />		''Ukrainian Sheriffs'' received distribution support from the IDFA Bertha Fund, and was released throughout Ukraine in July 2016, then to the Baltic and Balkan regions in September.<ref name=Božanic /> The film's television premiere took place on 1 April 2016 on the Franco-German channel ].<ref name="ARD" /><ref name = "YakutenkoReview" />

	<!--
	Shown at the ] (ASN) 2017 World Convention.<ref name = "Jarymowycz2018" />
	-->
	== Reception ==		== Reception ==

Revision as of 18:42, 29 March 2024

2016 Ukrainian documentary film

Ukrainian Sheriffs

Directed by	Roman Bondarchuk [uk]
Written by	Roman Bondarchuk
Produced by	Daryna Averchenko [uk] Uldis Sekulis
Edited by	Roman Bondarchuk Katerina Gornostay [uk] Borys Peter
Music by	Anton Baibakov [uk]
Release dates	20 November 2015 (2015 -11-20) (IDFA) 26 March 2016 (2016 -03-26) (DocuDays UA)
Running time	88 minutes
Countries	Ukraine Latvia Germany
Languages	Ukrainian Russian

Ukrainian Sheriffs (Template:Lang-uk; Romanized: Ukrainski Sherify) is a 2016 Ukrainian documentary film directed by Roman Bondarchuk [uk]. The film begins as a portrait of a small town which tries to meet its own policing needs but shifts when the Russo-Ukrainian War begins, depicting the war's effects in microcosm. Bondarchuk's first feature-length film, it was workshopped and developed at the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam IDFAcademy and the Dok.incubator program.

The film won the IDFA Special Jury Award and the Docs Against Gravity Mayor of Gdynia Award, and was chosen by the Ukrainian Association of Cinematographers as the best domestic non-fiction film of 2016. It ranked 56th on the Ukraine film archives' list of the best films of Ukrainian cinema, and was Ukraine's official selection for foreign-language film at the US 89th Academy Awards.

Context

Stara Zburyivka [uk] is a Ukrainian agricultural village in the hinterland of Kherson Oblast. It is located about 70 kilometres (43 mi) north of Crimea, at the south-eastern corner of the Dnieper–Bug estuary of the Black Sea, surrounded by wetlands and protected forests. In relative isolation, the villagers are used to doing things for themselves without government assistance. During filming the village had a population of approximately 1800, with different ethnic groups and once had a Zaporozhian Cossack settlement. The village has a mix of small but well-kept farmhouses and barns and dilapidated shacks with overgrown and neglected yards.

Until 2015, Ukraine had a single, nation-wide law-enforcement organization called the militsiya. The organization was founded during the Soviet era and it was directly involved in Soviet political repressions in Ukraine. The system changed little following independence, continuing to use Soviet-era procedures written in Moscow, with a reputation as the largest, most bureaucratic and corrupt police force in Europe. Bribes were required to gain employment or promotion, for many police interactions, and theft of property from crime scenes was common. The militsiya generally did not come to outlying villages like Staraya Zburivka, typically noting difficulty with transport.

Staraya Zburivka village council chairman (mayor) Viktor Marunyak had taken action to prevent land theft in the village and was arrested without evidence. Village residents rallied to defend him and secured his release. To prevent further conflicts with the militsiya and attend to the community's need for policing, Marunyak initiated the sheriffs program. Residents Victor Kryvoborodko and Volodya Rudkovsky were elected by their fellow villagers as public assistants to the militsiya precinct inspector, combining the roles of policemen and social workers, to de-escalize and settle conflicts before matters became criminal.

In 2015, following the Maidan Revolution, the militsiya was disbanded and replaced with the National Police of Ukraine. By September 2015, the Interior Ministry had officially launched its own Ukrainian Sheriffs program, replacing district militsiya officers with newly trained police officers, instructed to develop relationships with every family in the villages and small towns of their districts.

Synopsis

Sheriff Volodymyr Rudkovsky flinches from wood chips as he chops kindling for a small wood stove. He returns to an anteroom where his partner Sheriff Viktor Kryvoborodko receives a phone call with a report of a man threatening people with an axe. Without their coffee, they drive away in a yellow 1973 Lada sedan to investigate, but Kryvoborodko opens the window to finish his cigarette and the car's Ukrainian flag flies away.

They visit an elderly landlord who had sheltered a homeless man over the winter but the man later demanded money to leave the village. The two reportedly fought, resulting in property damage, and the landlord withholds the man's passport for repairs. The Sheriffs find a repairman and agree for the village to pay the expense, the documents are returned and the matter is quickly settled.

Other vagrants have decided to stay in the village and the sheriffs have attempted to settle them in abandoned, sometimes ramshackle buildings. The sheriffs explain that while not inherently bad, these people do drink and congregate in increasingly crowded and squalid conditions. An elderly woman's complaints against one such new neighbour include being perpetually drunk, operating a tavern and brothel, and putting an anaconda in her firewood shed.

The sheriffs check on Kolya and Vova, two petty criminals who are trying to turn their lives around, making sure that they are keeping out of trouble, that they can keep their phones charged, and helping with their probation documents. After cleaning garbage in a park, Kolya and Vova carry a log back to their home, so they'll have something to burn in cold weather.

Mayor Marunyak meets with Kolya who explains his ambitions to be respected and accepted, to have his own home, garden and family. He promises not to eat the neighbourhood dogs as he had in the past, believing it a preventative for tuberculosis. Marunyak later decides to transfer Kolya's deceased brother's house to him. Following the official transfer, Kolya begins tidying the overgrown yard of weeds and refuse while a neighbour loudly complains of an alcoholic wife-beating thief moving in.

A young man named Serhiy announces at a village council meeting his new group which seeks to form an independent community politically separated from Ukraine, issuing human passports and withholding taxes from the corrupt government. Serhiy espouses Russian World ideology and revisionist world history. Serhiy later addresses a gathering at the village club and is shouted down and ridiculed by the villagers, who stand behind the mayor. The mayor accuses him of trying to divide the villagers. He invites them to stand for election but leaves the meeting, tired of their antics.

Meanwhile, there are news reports of the Russian annexation of Crimea. A man with a paratrooper tattoo mans a precarious watchtower, listening to distant military transmissions on a small transistor radio. The War in Donbas begins and Serhiy is shown flying a powered paraglider around the watchtower, his purpose unstated.

The mood in the village changes with the seriousness of the war. The Sheriffs become less popular as they have to deliver registration notices for the military draft, which is met with some resistance. Rudkovsky is concerned that he might be on the draft list despite a shoulder injury. While many say that they will fight if the enemy comes from Crimea, most don't want to be sent to fight in Donbas and one man plans to emigrate to Germany. There is excitement when a military convoy passes through the village; Kryvoborodko has his young son Nikita pose for pictures in fatigues with an assault rifle. When the sheriffs deliver a draft notice to Serhiy's home, they discover that he has fled the village. They find the recipient of another draft notice dead in his home from apparent violence, and call the militsiya to begin a criminal investigation.

Kryvoborodko turns Kolya in to the police for stealing a bicycle and selling it to a junkyard, and Kolya receives a 3+1⁄2 year prison sentence. The sheriffs both have misgivings, Rudkovsky thinking they could have handled it themselves and Kryvoborodko acknowledging that prison never made anyone a better person. They're uncertain what should be done with Kolya's wife Tanya, who can only do simple tasks and may not be able to support herself. She reads a letter from Kolya and speaks to his better qualities.

After much preparation, the village holds its 9th of May victory celebrations. The mayor speaks of the new war with the new enemy, and the need for those drafted to serve in the military, as a half-dozen villagers have already done. Vova is seen wearing fatigues, suggesting that he has achieved an official position in public service.

Featured cast

Viktor Vasylyovych Marunyak is the chairman of the Staraya Zburivka village council, referred to in some sources as its mayor. He is a former history teacher. Years after the filming, on 21 March 2022 during the Russian occupation of Kherson Oblast, he was taken prisoner by Russian special forces (Spetsnaz GRU), who destroyed his house and refused to bring his medication for a chronic illness. After 23 days of captivity, Marunyak was released with pneumonia and nine broken ribs, which he told the Associated Press were due to water torture and beatings. Marunyak was hospitalized for ten days before escaping to Ukrainian-controlled territory.
Viktor Grygorovych Kryvoborodko is a village sheriff and pensioner. He aspired to a military career in the Soviet era then became a militsya officer until he retired to his home village due to health issues. The filmmakers state that he is 50 years old, though it is unclear when he is this age in the film's multi-year narrative. Shortly after the end of filming, he was elected a deputy of the village council.
Volodymyr Rudkovsky is a village sheriff and former member of the militsya who was primarily occupied with guard duties. He later worked as a nightclub bouncer. Following the birth of his daughter, he settled into a family life in the village and raises pigs on a small plot of land. The filmmakers state that he is 44 years old, though it is unclear when he is this age in the film's multi-year narrative. Shortly after the end of filming, he was elected a deputy of the village council.
Mykola "Kolya" Yanovskyy is an unemployed habitual petty criminal who performs community service in the village. He is unpopular due to his habits of eating the neighbourhood dogs and fermenting alcohol but aspires to be accepted and respected. In the film, he states that all of his cousins have been in prison and that his brother was sent to prison for the murder of their father.
Serhiy Lazarevych is a pro-Russian separatist whose vocal advocacy threatens to divide the village. He calls for the villagers to create a "community of people" independent of any government and espouses Russian world ideology.

Themes

Sociologist Christina Jarymowycz found the film to have themes similar to that of the Maidan: distrust toward state institutions and a desire to take matters into one's own hands. Kryvoborodko and Rudkovsky contrast with cold and often corrupt bureaucrats. They act as a buffer, trying to resolve issues before involving the militsiya, and become an effective alternative to state structures that offer little empathy or reliability.

The film repeatedly returns to Kolya, described by film critic Neil Young as a "hapless, chaotic chap who seems to have wandered in from a previous century". Introduced as a vagrant and a drunken wife-beater, his character is gradually revealed in what Author Anna Yakutenko described as a character transformation "from a villain into a victim of unfortunate circumstances." Although Kolya is shown to apply himself and use his own strengths to better his living conditions, he is ultimately imprisoned. However, at the Victory Day celebration, Kolya's community service partner Vova is seen wearing fatigues, which Jarymowycz believes is an indication that he, at least, has redeemed himself in the community.

Another theme is the effect of the conflict on everyday life. As the villagers prepare for Victory Day, their memories of past wars become recontextualized in the building conflict.

Production

Ukrainian Sheriffs was produced by Daryna Averchenko for DocuDays South (Ukraine) and co-produced by Uldis Cekulis for VFS Films (Latvia), Irena Taskovski for Taskovski Films (Germany), and Tania Georgieva for German television. Six European TV channels were involved in the production and the film also received support from the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA) Bertha Fund (Eastern Europe). It was directed by filmmaker Roman Bondarchuk, who also served as cinematographer and co-editor. According to Averchenko, who was also the film's screenwriter, the film is a story about how people organized themselves to deal with a societal need – policing – without waiting for higher authority to provide instructions.

Most of the film was shot from summer 2013 to summer 2014, which covered the period of the Euromaidan Revolution, the annexation of Crimea, and the beginning of the War in Donbas. Bondarchuk stated that the villagers initially avoided the cameras but later competed for the film crew's attention. From the extended shoots, nearly 200 hours of footage covered the sheriffs' investigations, duties, and daily lives. This was initially edited into small episodes with a first cut that was five hours in length and remained over two hours in length until its sixth cut. A preliminary version of the film was workshopped and developed with the guidance of expert documentary creators at the IDFAcademy Summer School in 2014. With additional funding, the crew returned to the village in May 2015 to record reactions to Kolya's arrest and imprisonment and the 70th anniversary Victory Day celebration, which concludes the film. A rough cut of the film was then developed through the dok.incubator program in 2015.

A final cut of 88 minutes was assembled by Bondarchuk and co-editor Kateryna Gornostai, with sound by Borys Peter and original music by Anton Baibakov. A 52-minute edit was made for television. Dialogue is in Russian and Ukrainian.

Release

The film premiered at the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA), and was shown in special programs and in competition at more than three dozen other international film festivals. Its domestic premiere was at the DocuDays UA International Human Rights Documentary Film Festival on 26 March 2016 when it was screened in seven Ukrainian cities: Kyiv, Kharkiv, Dnipro, Lviv, Mariupol, Odessa and Kherson. Its Asian premiere was at the DMZ International Documentary Film Festival (South Korea) in September 2016.

Ukrainian Sheriffs received distribution support from the IDFA Bertha Fund, and was released throughout Ukraine in July 2016, then to the Baltic and Balkan regions in September. The film's television premiere took place on 1 April 2016 on the Franco-German channel Arte.

Reception

Ukrainian film critic Sergey Trimbach [uk], writing for The Day, praised Ukrainian Sheriffs and described Marunyak, Kryvoborodko, and Rudkovsky as role models for Ukraine. He compared the latter two to popular archetypes of American police officers with their weathered masculine looks, confident strength and sense of humour. He concluded that the film is about taking initiative to better one's life rather than waiting on the outcome of disputes between greater powers Anna Yakutenko wrote for Kyiv Post that the film portrays rural lives "in a semi-comic way sincere and heartwarming" but felt that it did not go far enough into examining attitudes toward the war and that the ending was too abrupt. Neil Young, in The Hollywood Reporter, described Ukrainian Sheriffs as "an episodic, wryly amusing affair, displaying considerable interest in and sympathy with human foibles." Fionnuala Halligan, chief film critic at Screen Daily, also praised the film and predicted that it would do well at international film festivals, but found that the subtitles left parts of the story unclear.

Jarymowycz wrote that the film "artfully evokes both difficult truths and moments of hope in everyday lives of Ukrainians" but felt that its narrative simplified and idealized the village rather than challenging the audience with its rougher complexities.

Accolades

The film won the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam's (IDFA's) 2015 Special Jury Award. It also won the Mayor of Gdynia Award at the Docs Against Gravity Festival in Poland. The Ukrainian Association of Cinematographers (NSU) named Ukrainian Sheriffs the Best Ukrainian Non-Fiction Film of 2016 at the 2017 NSU awards ceremony [uk].

The NSU put Ukrainian Sheriffs on a shortlist of submissions for the Best Foreign Language Film category of the American 89th Academy Awards, along with The Nest of the Turtledove and Song of Songs. Ukrainian Sheriffs was later chosen as Ukraine's official submission for the category.

In 2021, Ukraine's National Oleksandr Dovzhenko Film Centre compiled a list of the best 100 films in Ukrainian cinema [uk] through a survey of Ukrainian film critics, film experts and festival curators. Ukrainian Sheriffs ranked at position 56 on the list.

Footnotes

Notes

Kryvoborodko and Rudkovsky were initially appointed as sheriffs by mayor Marunyak, and later confirmed in this role in a village election.
^ Serhiy promotes a revisionist history of an empire of 140 nationalities under Russia, from the Great Wall of China to the North Sea, living prosperously. It is an amalgamation of the Norse Rus' people, Kyivan Rus', and civilizations of Tartary as described by 17th-century Europeans whose vague and ignorant descriptions allowed these to be easily adapted in Russian conspiracy theories of a lost civilization.
The watchtower is pictured on the film poster, see infobox.
The Soviet republics commemorated Soviet victory over Nazi Germany on 9 May as Victory Day. In 2015, Ukraine changed its observance to Victory Day over Nazism in World War II, which was later moved to 8 May as Day of Remembrance and Victory over Nazism in World War II 1939 – 1945 with 9 May observed as Europe Day alongside the European Union.
Marunyak was an outspoken advocate for peace and democracy, held pro-Ukrainian rallies and hid activists in his home. He was one of more than fifty local leaders who were detained by the Russian military in an attempt to subdue the occupied territories in 2022.

References

^ "Ukrainische Sheriffs" (in German). ARD. 1 April 2016. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
^ Yakutenko, Anna (1 April 2016). "Film about Ukrainian sheriffs sheds light on rural life". Kyiv Post.
^ Young, Neil (7 December 2015). "'Ukrainian Sheriffs': IDFA Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 31 August 2016.
^ Trimbach, Sergey (23 September 2016). "Кіноновації та кіно надії" [Cinematic innovation and hopeful cinematography]. The Day (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 24 February 2021.
^ Oliynyk, Eugenia (11 December 2015). ""Українські шерифи": фільм про сільських волонтерів, які "замінили" міліцію" ["Ukrainian Sheriffs": a film about village volunteers who "replaced" the police]. Radio Liberty (in Ukrainian). Archived from the original on 7 May 2016. Retrieved 7 May 2016.
Peacock, Robert; Cordner, Gary (May 2016). "'Shock Therapy' in Ukraine: A Radical Approach to Post-Soviet Police Reform". Public Administration & Development. 36 (2). ISSN 0271-2075.
^ Jarymowycz, Christina Olha (March 2018). "Ukrainian Sheriffs, directed by Roman Bondarchuk". Nationalities Papers. 46 (2). Cambridge University Press: 326–328. doi:10.1080/00905992.2017.1379068.
^ Broeren-Huitenga, Joost (2 October 2017). "Bringing it Home: Sara Božanic about the innovative distribution of Ukrainian Sheriffs". International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
^ "На "Оскар" від України номінували фільм "Українські шерифи"" ["Ukrainian Sheriffs" nominated by Ukraine for the Oscars]. Ukrayinska Pravda (in Ukrainian). 9 September 2016. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
Chornokondrantenko, Margarita; Piper, Elizabeth (6 July 2015). "Ukraine launches Western-style police force to set a marker for reform". Yahoo News. Reuters. Retrieved 28 February 2024.
"Ukraine: "Ukrainian sheriffs" to operate in towns and villages of the country". Mena Report. London: SyndiGate Media Inc. 24 September 2015. eISSN 2219-0112. ProQuest 1716089909.
"Week in numbers". Ukraine Today. 30 September 2015. Retrieved 9 March 2024.
^ Halligan, Fionnuala (30 November 2015). "'Ukrainian Sheriffs': Review". Screen Daily. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
Lipinska, Urszula (July 2016). "Cichy Chaos". Warszawa: Fundacja KINO (in po). 51 (589): 57–59. ProQuest 1833034680.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link)
^ Karmanau, Yuras; Arhirova, Hanna; Kozlowska, Joanna; Keaten, Jamey (3 November 2022). "Russians try to subdue Ukrainian towns by seizing mayors". The Independent (online). London. Associated Press. ProQuest 2731906185.
^ Ramachandran, Naman (28 March 2022). "Russia's War in Ukraine: Jeremy Irons, Sinéad Cusack to Participate in Fundraiser for Ukrainian Refugees". Variety.
^ "Kill Your Darlings: Ukrainian Sheriffs". International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam. 17 November 2015. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
Vallejo, Aida; Winton, Ezra, eds. (28 May 2020). Documentary Film Festivals: Changes, Challenges, Professional Perspectives. Vol. 2. Springer International Publishing. pp. 42–43. ISBN 3030173240.
Wise, Damon (24 November 2015). "IDFA: How DOK.Incubator Helps Documentary Filmmakers Raise Their Game". Variety.
Petkovic, Vladan. "dok.incubator to present its 2020 projects in February". Cineuropa. Retrieved 28 March 2024.
^ "Stronger Intl Coalition Supporting Ukraine, Further Anti-Russian Sanctions Priority – Poroshenko". Ukraine Business Weekly. Interfax-Ukraine. 28 September 2016. p. 1.
"Ukrainian Sheriffs". DMZ International Documentary Film Festival. Retrieved 28 March 2024.
"Ukrainian film awarded with Special Jury Prize at IDFA documentary festival". Ukraine Today. 26 November 2015. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
"The Mayor of Gdynia Award". Millennium Docs Against Gravity. Retrieved 28 March 2024.
"Оголошено переможців Премії НСКУ найкращим вітчизняним фільмам 2016 року" [The winners of the NSU Award for the best domestic films of 2016] (in Ukrainian). Ukrainian Association of Cinematographers. 31 May 2017. Archived from the original on 3 June 2017. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
"Обрано три фільми-кандидати на "Оскар" від України" [Three films from Ukraine have been selected for Oscar nomination]. Ukrayinska Pravda (in Ukrainian). 31 August 2016. Retrieved 31 August 2016.
"Oscars: Ukraine Selects 'Ukrainian Sheriffs' for Foreign-Language Category". The Hollywood Reporter. 9 September 2016. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
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"100 найкращих українських фільмів усіх часів за версією кінокритиків. Список" [The 100 best Ukrainian films of all time according to film critics. List]. BBC News Ukraine (in Ukrainian). 25 June 2021.
"Top 100 – Dovzhenko Centre". National Oleksandr Dovzhenko Film Centre. Retrieved 29 March 2024.

External links

Ukrainian Sheriffs at IMDb

v t e Ukrainian submissions for Academy Award for Best International Feature Film
A Friend of the Deceased (1997) Mamay (2003) A Driver for Vera (2004) Aurora (2006) Illusion of Fear (2008) Firecrosser (2012) Paradjanov (2013) The Guide (2014) Ukrainian Sheriffs (2016) Black Level (2017) Donbass (2018) Homeward (2019) Atlantis (2020) Bad Roads (2021) Klondike (2022) 20 Days in Mariupol (2023) La Palisiada (2024)

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