Ukrainian filmmaker Lesia Diak’s first feature-length documentary, Dad’s Lullaby [+leggi anche:
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scheda film], is set to world-premiere in Sarajevo Film Festival’s Documentary Competition. Cineuropa exclusively brings you the trailer. 

The unseen damage inflicted by war on personal relationships pushes war veteran Serhiy away from his family. Haunted by loss and war, he battles to reconnect with his wife, Nadiia, and their three sons, Sasha (11), Artem (8) and Nikita (3).

The film takes an unexpected turn when Serhiy takes over the camera to film the director herself. This role reversal creates a space for vulnerable dialogue about love and human relationships as the filmmaker shares her own experiences of a breakup with another Ukrainian war veteran. The trust and empathy built between the protagonist and the filmmaker not only convey war’s lasting emotional toll but also showcase the healing potential of storytelling and documentary filmmaking. 

“My urgent need to understand how war affects human relationships began long ago when I entered a relationship with a soldier,” says Diak. “For two years, I observed what was happening to my war-worn partner. His post-war mental condition deeply affected me. I started experiencing anxiety and PTSD symptoms myself, which led me to search for a family expecting their loved one’s return from war.”

Co-producer Monica Lăzurean-Gorgan of Bucharest-based Filmways adds: “Dad’s Lullaby is a story that needs to be told now and brought to the widest possible audience as soon as possible because it addresses the aftermath of war. It’s not about the actual conflict, but rather the brokenness and damage war provokes in people’s lives. This story invites us to take a moment and reflect on these tense and uncertain times we live in.”

Dad’s Lullaby is a co-production between Ukraine’s DramaFree, Romania’s Filmways and Croatia’s 15th Art Production. 

Watch our exclusive trailer below: