Cyborgs: Heroes Never Die / Kiborhy

Based on true events, the story follows a two-week rotation of a Ukrainian battalion at the Donetsk airport in 2014. During this time, the soldiers must defend their positions, be courageous yet remain human, and grapple with numerous notions about the war, the enemy, future, and their Ukrainian identity.

The film is based on the recollections of the actual participants in the defense of the Donetsk airport. They also actively participated in the making of the film as film consultants. The screenplay was written by renowned Ukrainian playwright Natalia Vorozhbyt. Thanks to her efforts, alongside the action elements, the film includes significant polemical conversations among the main characters, who through constant discussions try to understand the causes and consequences of the war in Ukraine.

In these discussions, the authors benefit from the archetypal characters (one of the key components of Vorozhbyt’s dramaturgy), each representing a specific segment of Ukrainian society—whether it be a sheltered young man, an older man born in the USSR, or a Russian-speaking man standing guard with them. Through their conversations, arguments, and sometimes completely different worldviews, the image of a certain part of Ukrainian society slowly emerges.

Cyborgs brought fame to Crimean Tatar director Akhtem Seitablaiev. The film itself became one of the highest-grossing films in Ukrainian cinema, earning over 8 million hryvnias in its first weekend. However, even the film’s immense box office success did not allow it to break even. With a budget of 48 million hryvnias, the film grossed 23.2 million hryvnias. Still, it became an absolute triumph at the Golden Dzyga Awards, winning in six out of eight nominated categories.