Recommendations from the Kyiv Independent: ‘Askania Reserve’ by Andrii Lytvynenko (Patreon)

This is Dinara, a news editor at the Kyiv Independent. Covering news amidst a war in my country means writing about countless Russian crimes against places, people, and things most precious to my heart, including Ukraine's nature. Today, I want to recommend a movie that can make the latter closer to your heart, too.

"Askania Reserve" is a 2019 documentary by Andrii Lytvynenko about Europe's largest steppe reserve located in the part of Ukraine's Kherson Oblast currently occupied by Russia. Askania-Nova is a unique place combining a zoological park, a dendrological garden, and a virgin steppe sanctuary inhabited by hundreds of rare animals and plants.

Though rich in meditative, contemplative scenes of Askania-Nova's flora and fauna, the film focuses on its people.

Viktor Havrylenko, long-time director of the reserve, knows every local animal by name and behavior. Mykola Khlevniuk, an ex-veterinary assistant, swept to Askania by the wave of the 1970s hippie movement, hugs oak trees, and dreams of seeing Ayers Rock in Australia. And a young ornithologist, Pavlo Chehorka, who came to work in the steppe "not to be like everyone else," but instead has found himself battling loneliness.

They spend their days interacting with the living organism of Askania-Nova, studying and observing it. They keep track of animals, save birds stuck in plastic bags, and help chicks to hatch. And occasionally, they complain about being glued to a place where time seems to have lost its grip and prospects remain unclear.

But in every move of these people, you see love, reverence, and care for the place they live in and for the planet in general. The documentary's team calls the movie "a story about humanity," and humanity is felt every minute of watching it, sometimes even expanding beyond the screen.

When I saw "Askania Reserve" for the first time in a Kyiv cinema, the audience was so touched by Khlevniuk's story that they offered to the movie's director to crowdfund his trip to Australia. The latest we know is that they raised funds to buy Khlevniuk, who lived in a dilapidated house without electricity and water, a solar panel and a smartphone so he could launch his own video blog and earn money for his life-long dream.

Now, when the existence of Askania-Nova is endangered by Russia's war, only thoughts about that kind of humanity give hope.

The reserve's team miraculously managed to keep Askania-Nova under Ukrainian control for over a year of Russian occupation, but in March, Moscow installed its proxy to run the facility.

According to Ukrainian authorities, the illegal administration took some of Askania-Nova's rare animals to Russia and allowed hunting there, while Russian troops set up 11 military strongholds on the reserve's territory, putting it at significant risk in case of active combat in the area.

"Askania Reserve" is available in Ukrainian with English subtitles on Takflix, a Ukrainian movie streaming service.