The depiction of the 1990s in Ukrainian cinema of the 2010s–2020s as a way of national self­identification

Abstract

The relevance of the study. Understanding of this period — encompassing the collapse of the USSR, the beginning of Ukraine’s independence, and the experiences of contemporary filmmakers during their childhood and youth — remains pertinent and essential.
 The purpose of the study is to examine the stylistic and substantive features of the depiction of the 1990s by Ukrainian filmmakers in films of the 2010s and 2020s, and to prove that this is a way of national self-identification.
 The methodology. The following scientific methods were used: analysis (to process theoretical works, works on the history of art and philosophy, articles by film critics and interviews), comparative (to highlight the peculiarities of each of the domestic directors’ works), deductive (to highlight specific stylistic features from the general Ukrainian film process of the era of independence), synthesis (to highlight the tendency of directors’ approaches to depicting the past as a holistic phenomenon) and generalization (to write conclusions).
 The results. An analysis of the stylistic and substantive features of the depiction of the 1990s in Ukrainian cinema in the 2010s–2020s has revealed that this phenomenon is a way of national self-identification. The main thematic blocks that exist in the field of national self-identification in these films are: a critical look at the system of society; production of life values; deromanticization of the past; coverage of generational trauma; nostalgia for youth and childhood; the problem of national mentality and the past existing in the present; existential issues of the search for meaning; and identity crisis. The main tendency is to depict the formation and maturation of the protagonist in the story model of a coming-of-age film. In each case, the chosen thematic area depends on the way the author expresses his or her personal worldview.
 The scientific novelty of the study lies in the fact that it is the first comprehensive study of the phenomenon of depiction of the 1990s and the period of the first years of independence in Ukrainian cinema after the 2010s, which is a way of national self-identification.
 The practical significance. This study can be useful for further in-depth scientific study of both the trend of depicting the 1990s in cinema and the process of national self-identification. It can also be used in teaching film theory and film history.