THE Australian Premiere of George Gittoes’s new feature documentary, Ukrainistan Artist War, will screen as a late addition to the 2023 Screenwave International Film Festival line-up, screening on Tuesday 2 May at the Jetty Memorial Theatre, Coffs Harbour.

Gittoes’s powerhouse documentary follows artists behind the frontline, waging a war on war in the face of the Russian Invasion of Ukraine and Afghanistan after the withdrawal of foreign forces.

An anti-war film in the tradition of Picasso’s Guernica, Gittoes and partner, producer/musician Hellen Rose, go beyond the headlines and behind battle lines of Ukraine and Afghanistan to candidly capture the tragedy of those now displaced and separated by the Russian-Ukrainian war.

“It is always important to push the boundaries of the documentary medium – but in this film, it was more important than ever as the film starts with Picasso’s ‘Guernica’, I was challenged to find the means to, ‘scream out’ a new anti-war message, for a time when we all know, war should be over,” George Gittoes said.

As with Gittoes’ award-winning documentaries about war and the human stories of hope and redemption (Soundtrack to War, 2005 and Love City, Jalalabad, 2013), Ukrainistan Artist War is an urgent and essential film that delivers an outcry of optimism that humanity can end violent conflict and embrace peace through creativity.

A special Q and A with George Gittoes and Helen Rose, live from Kyiv, Ukraine, will follow the film.

The Screenwave International Film Festival (SWIFF) is on now, hosting over 140 film screenings and events through to May 5 in Coffs Harbour and Bellingen, New South Wales.