Ukrainian producer and scriptwriter Anna Palenchuk is MacEwan’s next Gene Zwozdesky Artist in Residence.

Palenchuk is the co-founder of the Ukrainian production company 435 Films in Kyiv and Be Brave Films in Toronto. She has produced award-winning documentaries and feature films that have premiered at prestigious festivals including Cannes, The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) and DOC NYC.

Palenchuk also served as the line producer for the Ukrainian shoot of RRR (2022), an Indian action drama that won both the Golden Globe and the Oscar for Best Original Song in 2023.

“I’m honoured to join MacEwan University as the next Gene Zwozdesky Artist in Residence,” said Palenchuk. “During my residency, I’ll be working on Ukrainian Sisterhood, a documentary film project inspired by the experiences of Ukrainian women who were forced to leave their homes because of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. This story is personal to me. I became displaced by the war myself, and through this film I want to explore what happens after people leave – how they rebuild their lives, find connection and support one another through uncertainty and loss.”

Palenchuk is based in Toronto, where she founded and develops the non-profit Ukrainian-Canadian Film Community (UCFC), an organization that brings together Ukrainian filmmakers who live in Canada giving them opportunities for mutual support. 

She is already making plans for how MacEwan students will benefit from her experiences in film production.

“The residency will provide opportunities for direct engagement with students through course-integrated workshops,” said Palenchuk. “I will lead a session focused on ethical and practical approaches to working with participants who have experienced trauma. Drawing from my work with protagonists affected by war, displacement and loss, the workshop will address methods of building trust, maintaining ongoing consent and navigating the complexities of ethical representation when working with vulnerable communities.  

The Artist in Residence program was established in 2022 and is a collaboration between the Ukrainian Resource and Development Centre and the Faculty of Fine Arts and Communications. The program is funded by a donation from the Ukrainian Foundation for College Education and the Zwozdesky family.