Viddana Explained

Native Name:Віддана
Director:Christina Sivolap
Based On:Felix Austria
Producer:Nadiya Zayonchkovska
Starring:Marianna Januszewicz, Alesya Romanova, Roman Lutsky
Music:Yevhen Filatov
Studio:Film.UA
Distributor:Olga Ukraine
Country:Ukraine
Language:Ukrainian

Viddana (Ukrainian: Віддана) is a Polish-Ukrainian feature film based on the novel Felix Austria by Ukrainian author Sofia Andrukhovych. Starring Marianna Januszewicz in the lead role as Stefania Czorneńko, the film follows Stefania and her relationship with Adele, with whom she grew up and now works for as a maid.[1]

Plot summary

The film is a historical drama which takes place in the 19th century in the Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria, a part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. It begins in the city of Stanislav in 1868, when a fire destroys the home of Dr. Anger. His wife is killed, but he is able to rescue his daughter Adela and the daughter of a servant, Stephania Czorneńko. Dr. Anger raises them together, and the film jumps forward 25 years.[2]

The remainder of the film follows Stefania and her relationship with Adele, with whom she grew up with and now works for as a maid. The film uses their friendship and understanding as a frame for the inequality which is seen in the background throughout the movie.

Production

The film is the directorial debut for Christina Sivolap and has been cited as one of the first Ukrainian production with European ambitions, with its source being translated into multiple languages and the movie attempting to appeal to an international audience through its cinematography.[3] Singers Tina Karol and Yulia Sanina, of the band The Hardkiss, collaborated on a duet to create a part of the soundtrack of the movie.

Filming lasted 30 days, and was shot in Kyiv, Chernivtsi, Bila Tserkva, and Nizhylovychi. 34 actors and more than 500 extras were involved in the movie. Its cinematography was directed by Oleksiy Lamakh and Oleksandr Batenev, and the script was written by Alina Semeryakova.[4]

The film's composer is musician Yevhen Filatov. The first soundtrack to the film was the song "Boat" by the band Odyn v kanoe, which debuted with the first teaser, in a new arrangement written by Filatov.[5]

On December 12, 2019, the second soundtrack to the film Free was presented, with lyrics by rapper Alyona Alyona and a duet by Tina Karol and Yulia Sanina (lead singer of The Hardkiss).[6]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Tina Karol y Yulia Sanina graban la banda sonora de la película "Viddana" . 2021-03-07 . www.ukrinform.es . 12 December 2019 . es.
  2. Web site: 2022 . Projects: Viddana . 9 May 2022 . Digital Cinema Ukraine.
  3. Web site: Ukraińska "Viddana" z europejskimi ambicjami. 2021-03-07. PolskieRadio.pl.
  4. News: 20 June 2019 . Film.ua завершив зйомки драми "Віддана" . uk . Film.ua has finished shooting the drama "Viddana" . Detector Media . 9 May 2022.
  5. Web site: Вийшов перший тизер фільму за романом Софії Андрухович. Укрінформ. uk. 29 March 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20191103012406/https://www.ukrinform.ua/rubric-culture/2669632-vijsov-persij-tizer-filmu-za-romanom-sofii-andruhovic.html. 3 November 2019. 3 November 2019.
  6. Web site: Реперка alyona alyona написала пісню для Тіни Кароль та Юлії Саніної. YABL. 2020-01-08. uk. 15 December 2019. https://archive.today/20191215080304/https://yabl.ua/2019/12/12/reperka-alyona-alyona-napisala-pisnyu-dlya-tini-karol-ta-yuliyi-saninoyi.