While so many people, in the twelfth year of the largest war in Europe since World War II, still cowardly fear avoiding naming the aggressor, calling it a “Ukraine War” or a “Ukrainian conflict.” Kelsie became the first, and so far the only, international artist in the world who dared to spend a week on the front line, risking her life to investigate and show the truth to the entire world. That is why our film truly deserves mandatory viewing.
Andrii Samerkhanov – General Producer
“There are moments in life when you come face to face with absolute evil. Decarlos Brown, who killed Iryna Zarutska in a U.S. subway, can be considered such a case. I don’t know his full biography or what he did before that moment, but when he stabbed an unprotected, unknown young woman in the back and killed her, at that moment, he became pure, absolute evil. This is easy to recognize, easy to name for what it is, and easy to punish. But what if evil is so much greater that its boundaries are no longer visible? What if Decarlos Browns have seized your country, and not only do they kill themselves, they force others to kill as well, on a massive scale? And you can no longer call evil “evil” because of concerns for your own safety. And what if that country is enormous and possesses a vast nuclear arsenal? Then, even across the ocean, as we see, calling evil “evil” can become a problem even for people with great power. Because once you name evil as evil, you are forced to fight it—there is no other option. With evil, you can either fight it or become evil yourself. I think that if we tried to justify Decarlos Brown or shield him from justice, it would itself be considered absolute evil. Wouldn’t that create conditions for the deaths of other girls? Or could he simply be released and the situation considered no longer dangerous? Andrii Samerkhanov – General Producer
Kelsie Kimberlin is a young woman who made a choice and stood up to fight the vast, absolute evil that russia has become. A small woman against enormous evil. She strikes this demon with words, songs, films—and even lethal drones. A person may not be able to change everything, but what they certainly can and must do is choose a side: name absolute evil as absolute evil, and begin to fight it to the best of their ability.”
Andrii Voloshyn – Director
We did not want to tell a story about heroism or saving the world. This is a story about choice and honesty with oneself. Remaining on the sidelines is also a choice — the choice to live in a world where war exists only as background noise.
But there is another choice: to see evil with one’s own eyes, to listen to those who live inside the war, and to accept reality without filters or excuses. To see it not through screens, not through numbers and official statements, but through people, cities, and the silence after explosions. This step is not taken to answer the world, but to answer oneself.
Once you see war from the inside, maintaining the same distance is no longer possible. Reality strips away illusions but brings clarity, and it becomes impossible to pretend that this is a “foreign conflict.” understanding comes only through personal involvement, responsibility, and choice — even when that choice offers no easy answers. Kelsie Kimberlin made that choice and that is why we made this movie. Oleksii Liebiediev – Director
Freedom Begins On The Far Side Of Despair
Freedom is not born at the moment of choice, but at the moment when choice becomes inevitable. When grief shatters the familiar world into pieces, when pain strips away the last illusions of justice and order, a person is left alone with the ultimate question: what comes next?
For Kelsie, the loss of her cousin became the beginning of a path she chose herself. Despair did not paralyze her — it set her free. It freed her from fear, from doubt, from the comfortable distance of an observer. She realized that true freedom is not the right to look away, but the courage to face the truth, no matter how terrifying it may be.
Her journey to Ukraine is not merely a trip to a grave. It is a search for truth that matters more than peace of mind. Every testimony, every meeting, every detail of the investigation brought her closer to an understanding: what happened to her brother was not an accident, not a “tragedy of war,” but part of a deliberate destruction of an entire people.
And in that realization, her freedom was born — the freedom to act, the freedom to demand justice, the freedom not to remain silent. Because true freedom is not the absence of pain, but the ability to transform pain into action.
Seeking punishment for her brother’s killers is not revenge; it is an act of restoring what was destroyed — dignity, memory, justice. It is her responsibility to her brother, to herself, and to those who can no longer speak. Marharyta Vlasova – Script Writer
War and art are things that are completely opposed to one another, because war brings death, while art brings life. Yes, art can speak about the horrors of war, but to do this truthfully is extremely difficult if it is not driven by mere opportunism. The main character of the film gives his life at a young age for the lives and freedom of others. In words, this sounds almost easy, but conveying it through the language of art is nearly impossible. And the role of art is not simply to convey it, but to make it possible to experience at least a tiny fraction of what has happened—and what continues to happen—here in Ukraine. The last message is the art of our experience. Yurii Shepeta – Composer
I offer my deep condolences as you continue to mourn the loss of your beloved cousin. The first lady and I are keeping you in our thoughts. Joe Biden —President of the United States (2021–2025)
Our musicians wear body armor instead of tuxedos. They sing to the wounded in hospitals. Fill the silence with your music. Fill it today to tell our story. Tell the truth about this war on your social networks, on tv. Support us, in any way you can. Any, but not silence. And then peace will come. Volodymyr Zelenskyy – President of Ukraine
One person can change everything, and everyone is special in their own way. Kelsie Kimberlin
Kelsie, you having the balls to come to the frontline to say goodbye to your cousin and ask him for forgiveness is one of the most outstanding things I have ever heard of in my life. Callsign “GYPSY” – 12th Special Purpose Brigade Azov of the National Guard of Ukraine
These babies are the future of Ukraine, and that is why we keep delivering them along the frontline. Svitlana Kulynych – Director of Kherson Maternity Hospital
The russian army is committing war crimes every single day, and the civilized world must hold every war criminal accountable. Oleksandra Matviichuk – Nobel Peace Prize Winner
Thank you for telling the stories that are not being reported, and using your music and platform to support Ukraine. Jamala – Eurovision 2016 Winner
We have filed a federal lawsuit under the State Sponsor of Terrorism Act to hold Russia, Iran, North Korea, and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard accountable for the death of Andrii Rachok. John Flood – Attorney