Is it true that the director of the Oscar -winning film “20 Days in Mariupol” issued other people's archival shots from Donetsk as a shooting of the city?

In mid -March 2024, there were reports in Runet that there was plagiarism in the Ukrainian documentary tape: supposedly its authors were unlawfully used personnel from the old film about the children of Donbass, giving them out for shooting from Mariupol. We found out if this is really so.

One of the first to pay attention to the alleged plagiarism was the author of the Telegram channel "Schoolman-Nationalist. The son of the Listovsky regiment"(145,000 views at the time of writing this analysis). March 18, he wrotethat while watching the film, he had a feeling of deja vu: “Somewhere I already saw one of the frames. And for sure, I saw - in a short film toys, which came out eight years ago and showing the children of the Donbass, who are bombed by the crests. Do you understand all the absurdity of what is happening? Khokhls inserted a frame into the film to show how much the bloody and terrible massacre was arranged by Rusnya, but at the same time they show shots from Donetsk they had fired by eight years ago. ” We are talking about a short fragment with a pink jacket hanging on a tree (many authors believe that it is children). Later the author Added: “And the worst thing is that throughout the film there may be more than one hundred such personnel.” On this, the “Nationalist School” did not stop, releasing a few more posts on the same topic. For example, he suggestedthat shots from Donbass could be shot by the director “20 days in Mariupol” himself: “If it is really [so], then there can be no doubt. This is a thoughtful and arrogant lies. ” Then a blogger Clarifiedthat in fact, not Donetsk, but Gorlovka, and after his investigation, are shown at allegedly borrowed personnel suggestedthat the primary source of the video clip - reportage Channel One of 2014. Moreover, some other authors They saythat the video with the jacket was shot in 2015.

A few days earlier about the staff, which were allegedly issued for the shooting of the besieged Mariupol, Blogger Zhmil said. During Stream with historian Alexander Stefanov, he told About the alleged plagiarism, clarifying that it was not a historical insert about the events of 2014.

Subsequently, other resources picked up the history. For example, the host of the “Channel One” was shared by the “nationality schoolchild” in Telegram Artyom Sheinin (89,000 views) and journalist Andrey Medvedev (159,000), who wrote: “Of course, the personnel were shot by Donetsk journalists. Long before his ". Blogger Alexey Antonov (172,000 views) declaredWhat for the alleged plagiarism would give "two or three times to the director for e *** at the armature." The fact that the “Ukrainian pseudo-documentary” allegedly stole shots from a short film, created in 2015 by Artyom Grishanov, also wrote Telegram channels Readovka (890,000 views), "The voice of the country"(150 000),"Ukraine.ru"(122 000),"An alcoholic historian"(95,000) and pseudo -fakkochka channel"Minravdi"(23,000). Similar publications were widely dispersed on VKontakte (examples here, here And here) and in the social network X, including in English (here, here, here And here).

The author of the documentary ""20 days in Mariupol" - Ukrainian military reporter Mstislav Chernov. The tape tells of almost three weeks that he with his colleagues in the composition teams The Associated Press (AP) agencies in a besieged city after Russia's full -scale invasion of Ukraine, which began on February 24, 2022. Until mid -March, journalists documented what was happening in Mariupol, including the death and burial of local residents, bombing and the destruction of the city by the Russian military. One of the key points of the picture was the shelling of the maternity hospital in Mariupol - Prochremlin propagandists later Approvedthat the personnel were falsified from there. March 10, 2024 tape "20 days in Mariupol" Received The Academy Award in the category "Best Feature Documentary". During the Chernov award ceremony saidThat, probably, he is the first Oscar -winning director who would prefer not to make his film.

"Verified" looked picture The whole confirms that a viral frame with a pink jacket on a tree was shown there (the scene begins at a time mark 01:15:29).

We also watched the short film of Artyom Grishanov “Toys”. On the author's YouTube channel (in Description He represents himself as a musician and poet) The film is posted in two versions: First Published on September 22, 2015, The second - Two days later. In both videos there is the same scene with a jacket that was used by Chernov in the 2023 film. In one version of the "toys" viral shots are shown at the mark 04:29, in another - on 02:48.

Let's figure out where and when the original video with a jacket was shot. Although many publications of 2024 claims that the video was shot in Donetsk, Channel One " showed These personnel in the report about the shelling of Gorlovka - cities north From Donetsk. The same image illustrated The news of the RT and RIA Novosti Ukraine TV channel. We are talking about shelling, which happened November 14, 2014. Then why was the video shot a few years ago in Gorlovka was shown in the film about the events of 2022 in Mariupol? 

Most of the “20 days in Mariupol” is shots shot by Chernov in this city from February 24 to March 15, 2022. However, in the film at the end of the 16th day, he pronounces a monologue in English, which is translated into Russian as follows: “A sleepless night. In my head, feverish thoughts about the past, present and future are carried out. I want all this to end, but I do not have power over this. My memory continues to carry me home and back to war. If someday my daughters ask me: "What did you do to stop this madness, this sadistic virus of destruction?", I want to be able to give them an answer. " During this scene, cutting from the video is shown.

For example, there are a funeral that many people came to, which could hardly have happened in Mariupol in March 2022 due to the constant shelling of the besieged Ukrainian city. Using a reverse search for the images "verified" found outthat the captured ceremony was held in Donetsk on November 7, 2014. Then two teenagers were buried who Died As a result of an artillery blow that came in the school stadium. The film "20 days in Mariupol" was Created together Associated Press and Frontline PBS, and in the photo bank there is video With the same personnel that are used in the documentary tape. Although the author of the video is not indicated, Chernov Mentioned as Photo correspondent, present at the funeral.

Also included in the cut, they included shots with hugging people and a girl in a red jacket. Video With these personnel is also in the AP database - it was shot on April 6, 2022 in Bucha. Correspondents filmed the reunification of two sisters who did not see 42 days (the girl is probably their relative).

One of the frames shows a crying woman held by rescuers. According to the description video From the AP base, her husband died as a result of shelling the market in Kharkov on July 21, 2022. The name of the operator is not again indicated, but it is known that photos Girls were made by Evgeniy Madoletka, also Participating in the creation of "20 days in Mariupol."

As for the personnel with a pink jacket, which Chernov allegedly stole from the 2015 film, then the original video From Gorlovka is also placed in the AP library. Moreover, for sure It is knownThat Chernov himself shot the consequences of that shelling.

Thus, on the basis of the above arguments, two conclusions can be drawn at once. Firstly, Chernov did not give out old shots from Gorlovka for the video shot in Mariupol. In the film, the director used an artistic technique: he illustrated his “feverish thoughts about the past, present and future”, adding to the final installation archival frames of the events that were witnessed. Some of them happened back in 2014, and part occurred after Chernov left Mariupol.

Secondly, plagiarism, borrowing and theft of personnel, which many wiren bloggers wrote about, was simply not-Chernov has been working with the Associated Press for many years and, apparently, he himself removed the consequences of the shelling of Gorlovka, including a frame with a pink jacket hanging on a tree. The agency at the same time participated in the creation of a documentary tape. But the author of the short film “Toys” Artyom Grishanov (it is possible that illegally) borrowed personnel belonging to AP.

Photo on the cover: frame of the film "20 days in Mariupol"

Not true

What do our verdicts mean?

Read on the topic:

1. AP. 20 Days in Mariupol: The Team That Documented City’s Agony
2. Is it true that a biographical film about Zelensky with a budget of $ 115 million is being shot in Hollywood?
3. Is it true that in Gostol Ukrainians shot a staged video about the "atrocities of the Russian troops"?
4. Is it true that they plan to make the film “The History of the Black Sea” in Ukraine?