Sean Penn is an executive producer on "Black Sunflowers," a documentary feature portraying Ukrainian youths. Charades and CAA Media Finance are launching sales on “Black Sunflowers,” the timely new feature documentary directed by James Marcus Haney (“No Cameras Allowed”) which will premiere at Toronto. Slated to premiere in the TIFF Docs section, “Black Sunflowers” portrays a young generation of Ukrainians, soldiers and civilians, whose coming of age is shaped by martial law and duty on the front lines.
As another year of conflict stretches on, Haney captures the ordinary moments amid the war, moving between fast cars, underground clubs and conversations about the future. The American filmmaker closely collaborated with a Ukrainian production team led by Volodymyr Yatsenko at Limelite (“To the Victory!”), alongside a local crew. The film is produced by Pedram Rezaee and Vlad Bolyelov and co-produced by Yevhenii Zdorovylo, Samy Mosher, Eric Maldin, Volodymyr Yatsenko and Anna Yatsenko, with Mikayla Jean Miller serving as creative producer.
Sean Penn has joined the film as an executive producer, alongside Jay and Cameron Bush, Adam Tudhope, Anna October and Dianna Agron. Charades handles international sales and co-reps North America and global rights with CAA Media Finance. The film boasts a powerful soundtrack with music from British record producer Fred again.. and Brian Eno’s Secret Life project, as well as an original score by Brad Oberhofer and Ukrainian electronic composer Koloah.
Also featured in the soundtrack are Aphex Twin, Four Tet, Idles, Sega Bodega, Nastya Vogan, Два Два Дев’ять, Ann Annie and Morwan. The film closes with a version of Morphine’s “Do Not Go Quietly Unto Your Grave” sung by a traditional choir based in Kyiv. Emphasizing the universality of their experiences, he said young people, who’ve already gone through the pandemic, are now forced to join the front lines to protect their own.
A nature photographer turned war journalist. Teenagers who now already have 2.5 years of combat experience at the zero line. Lovers pulled apart to different battlegrounds.
And as I looked into these faces, I couldn’t help but see parts of myself,” he said. Haney said he recognized himself in many of the young Ukrainians he met, who shared the same dreams, musical tastes and youthful impulses as people elsewhere their age, even as they faced both the realities of war and its psychological toll. He said he hoped the film would bring a more human dimension to the conflict and remind audiences how much people across the world have in common.
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