Since the problems of the Ukrainian cultural sphere in the context of war are usually studied in relation to consumers of cultural products, the article emphasizes the expediency of studying the state of culture from the point of view of its direct creators. Using the author’s methodology and on the basis of empirical study, the article highlights the peculiarities of the Ukrainian cultural organizations and cultural figures’ adaptation to the сrisis provoked by russia’s armed aggression. The key factors of cultural organizations and creative industries’ successful adaptation to the war conditions are identified. The survival strategy of cultural workers and institutions can be described as cost savings, along with maintaining activities, creating new products and services, and taking active measures to attract additional funding. It is concluded that adaptation does not always take active forms and is not necessarily associated with positive changes in the organization. Often, adaptability is only the result of passive adaptation to the conditions of war. Special attention is paid to the analysis of changes in the level of adaptability of cultural organizations in the dynamics (from November 2022 to December 2023). Despite the fact that the adaptability index tends to increase in comparison with 2022, there is an increase in neutral assessments of the prospects of their organizations and a decrease in positive expectations among respondents. Based on the respondents’ answers, matrices of motivational and demotivational factors of adaptability were constructed. This allowed us to distinguish adapted and non-adapted organizations and workers and the primary obstacles to adaptation. The results of the study show that cultural institutions need support from the state but the specifics of the request depend on the legal form of the organizations. Groups with high and low levels of adaptability were identified, which requires the development of additional support programs for vulnerable cultural organizations and cultural figures.