It can be dangerous to be Black in post-Soviet-era Ukraine, a country of blue-eyed blonds. Olga Nenya faces down age-old xenophobia as she fosters 23 children along with her own, including 16 biracial orphans, in a ramshackle house in a small Ukrainian town. At first their lives seem poor but idyllic: love and affection from Olga, swimming trips to the lake, playing with chickens, goats and cats, going to school and doing chores in the garden and house. But as the film progresses over three years, a more layered and psychologically disturbing portrait emerges. Olga plays favourites and picks on kids who contradict her, and strict Soviet-era ideas about child rearing stymie their opportunities and abilities. Julia Ivanova has crafted a rich observational portrait of a woman who wants to save the children from an unjust world—her way. Critically acclaimed at Sundance, this doc scooped Hot Docs' Best Canadian Feature Documentary award in 2011. Lynne Fernie
Focus On Julia Ivanova program supported by K.M. Hunter Charitable Foundation.