In the 1990s, out of the ruins of empty national studios — Dovzhenko, Odesa, Ukrkinokhronika — came the first films of independent Ukraine. In 1997, Viacheslav Kryshtofovych directed the drama A Friend of the Deceased. The screen adaptation of Andrii Kurkov’s novella became the first film to represent Ukraine at the prestigious Cannes Film Festival.
Following in the footsteps of Kryshtofovych — a master who had begun his career back in Soviet times at the Dovzhenko Studio — were Ihor Strembitskyi (Wayfarers, 2005) and Maryna Vroda (Cross, 2011), winners of the Cannes short film competition. In 2014, on that same French Riviera, came the triumph of The Tribe — the most awarded Ukrainian film, with over 100 international prizes. Myroslav Slaboshpytskyi captured the world’s attention with the film’s revolutionary form: a literal portrayal of the deaf community told entirely through sign language and emotion.
With The Tribe begins the timeline of new Ukrainian cinema as a cultural phenomenon, soon to gift the world Atlantis (2019) by Valentyn Vasianovych, winner of the Venice Horizons competition, and Klondike (2022) by Maryna Er Gorbach, awarded Best Director at the Sundance Film Festival.
“Probably I will be the first director on this stage who will say I wish I’d never made this film. I wish to be able to exchange this for Russia never attacking Ukraine, never occupying our cities. I wish I could give all the recognition (in exchange) for Russia not killing tens of thousands of my fellow Ukrainians.”
With these words, Mstyslav Chernov began his speech at the world’s foremost film event. On March 10, 2024, he received the Academy Award for 20 Days in Mariupol.
Together with photographer Evgeniy Maloletka and journalist Vasilisa Stepanenko, Chernov filmed the tragedy of the besieged city during the full-scale invasion. The footage was turned into one of the most important documentary films in both Ukrainian and world history. It is invaluable evidence of Russian crimes against civilians — evidence that will one day play a central role in an international court.
The BAFTA TV Awards have been presented annually by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts since 1995. For several years now, Ukraine’s struggle for freedom has been at the center of attention.
In 2023, 4 projects about the full-scale war were nominated. In the category of Best News Coverage, the winner was Channel 4’s broadcast Live from Kyiv. In 2024, Yuliia Sanina and Hannah Waddingham received the BAFTA TV Award for hosting Eurovision 2023.In 2025, the award for Best Single Documentary went to Ukraine: Enemy in the Woods, a film about the servicemen of the 210th Separate Special Battalion Berlingo.
The film Rock, Paper, Scissors won in the category of Best British Short Film. Based on true events, it tells the story of Russia’s full-scale invasion. “I’m going to dedicate this award to my friend Zhenia Svitlychnyi, who died in the war 5 days before we started shooting. And also to all those who defend and make my country independent,” said actor Oleksandr Rudynskyi, who played the lead role, addressing an audience of millions from the stage.
Almost everyone has seen, or at least heard of, Hollywood blockbusters such as Titanic, Fast & Furious, Mission: Impossible, Avatar, The Hobbit, Batman, Terminator, The Lord of the Rings, X-Men, and Transformers. But few people know that these films would never have been so spectacular without inventions of Ukrainians.
For many years, the world’s top specialists in film engineering have been honored with the so-called Technical Oscars. In 2006, 2 statuettes were awarded to the founder of Filmotechnic, Anatolii Kokush, as well as to engineer Yurii Popovskyi and cinematographer Oleksii Zolotarov. They were recognized for outstanding scientific and technological achievements in cinema — the creation of the Autorobot (U-Crane) mobile camera crane, the world’s longest camera crane Cascade, and the stabilized camera head Flight Head.
Today, you can take a look at Ukraine’s Technical Oscars at Ukraine WOW.
Since 1901, the Nobel Prize has been awarded annually to people who change the world for the better. Many of its laureates were born in Ukraine. Among them are microbiologist and immunologist Illia Mechnikov, biochemist Selman Waksman, writer Shmuel Yosef Agnon, chemist Roald Hoffmann, and physicist Georges Charpak.
A special distinction is the Nobel Peace Prize, awarded to those who have made a significant contribution to the defense of human rights. Its laureates include legendary figures such as Martin Luther King Jr., the 14th Dalai Lama, and Nelson Mandela.
In 2022, the Ukrainian human rights organization Center for Civil Liberties received the award — the first Nobel Prize in the history of independent Ukraine. At the ceremony, the Head of the Center, Oleksandra Matviichuk, delivered a speech published by leading global media outlets. She concluded with these words: “...since this is a Nobel Prize for Peace during wartime, I would like to address people in different countries with an appeal for solidarity. You don’t have to be Ukrainians to support Ukraine. It is enough to simply be human.”
Ukrainians have received the most prestigious award in the field of journalism twice — both times for very tragic reasons. In 2022, all Ukrainian journalists were honored with a special citation for their coverage of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. And in 2023, the prize was awarded to Evgeniy Maloletka, Vasilisa Stepanenko, and Mstyslav Chernov for their work in Mariupol.
After leaving the besieged city, the documentarians spent another year investigating Russian war crimes — the bombing of the drama theater, filtration camps, the demolition of bombed-out buildings, and the reburial of the dead. The Ukrainians were recognized in the Public Service category.
Ukrainian contemporary art is in demand everywhere — from New York to Tokyo.
In 2001, Harald Szeemann, curator of the Venice Biennale, invited Viktor Marushchenko — the first participant from independent Ukraine — to take part in the 49th Biennale with his photo series Chornobyl. Since then, Ukrainian artists have been a regular presence at the world’s foremost art forum.
At the most recent Biennale, Zhanna Kadyrova presented an organ whose pipes extended into spent Russian shells collected in Ukrainian cities. On public transport around the world, stickers depicting Russian missiles would appear unexpectedly — that was also a part of Kadyrova’s project. Oleksii Sai created a 32-meter sculpture I’m Fine from street signs, fences, and gates damaged in the war across different regions of Ukraine, and presented it at the iconic Burning Man festival in the United States. Works by Nikita Kadan have been acquired for London’s Tate collection, while New York’s MoMA purchased Dana Kavelina’s video Letter to a Turtledove.
These are only a few among hundreds of artists who are not simply creating in wartime — they are rallying ever greater support for Ukraine from the international community.
Ukraine first competed under its own flag at the 1994 Olympic Games. And immediately made a sensation — figure skater Oksana Baiul became an Olympic champion. The victory of the 16-year-old was so unexpected that the organizers had to urgently find a recording of the Ukrainian anthem.
Since then, Ukraine has won 160 Olympic medals, including 41 gold, as well as so many awards at world and European championships in various sports that the walls of this entire hall would not be big enough to list them all.
From the first Olympic gold to the modern triumphs of Usyk, Kharlan, and Mahuchikh — our athletes keep moving forward with determination, no matter what. In both sports and life, this trait is defining for Ukrainians.
Here are just a few sporting trophies. But each of them is undeniably wow!
Oleksandr Usyk’s first major triumph was the gold medal at the 2012 Olympics. He later became the undisputed cruiserweight world champion before moving up to heavyweight. Experts were skeptical: Usyk was to stand against two-meter tall giants. Usyk defeated them all — Anthony Joshua, Tyson Fury, Daniel Dubois. In fact, he defeated each of them twice. The Ukrainian boxer became the first in history to be a 2-time undisputed heavyweight world champion.
As a result of his sporting mastery — a completely cleared division, zero defeats, all of the possible titles, and first place in the Pound for Pound rankings. Nothing like this had ever happened in boxing history.
The Ballon d’Or is the most prestigious individual award in football, established by the French magazine France Football in 1956. In 2004, Andriy Shevchenko became the first and by now the only Ukrainian to win this trophy for independent Ukraine. The forward, who scored against Barcelona and Real Madrid, captained the Ukrainian national team during its historic first World Cup and the home 2012 Euros. He holds the record for most goals scored for the national team. Today, Shevchenko is a living legend and an example of how perseverance and effort yield the best results.
In May 2009, Donetsk’s Shakhtar became the first and only Ukrainian club in independent Ukraine to win the UEFA Cup. In the final in Istanbul, Mircea Lucescu’s team defeated Germany’s Werder Bremen 2–1 thanks to goals by Luiz Adriano and Jadson. Today, Shakhtar are multiple-time Ukrainian champions, whose players have scored at the world’s top stadiums. But we all wait and believe that one day the legendary team will return to its home field — the Donbas Arena.
Read these achievements out loud: world No. 3 in 2017, 2018, and 2019; bronze medalist at the 2020 Summer Olympic Games; semifinalist of the 2025 Billie Jean King Cup as part of the Ukrainian women’s national team; 18-time WTA singles champion and 2-time doubles champion; 3-time Grand Slam semifinalist (2019, 2023). WOW, right? And it’s all about our Elina Svitolina.
One of the most prestigious events in tennis is the WTA Finals — a tournament between the world’s top 8 players. In 2018, Svitolina took part as the world No. 3. During the tournament, the Ukrainian defeated virtually the entire elite of world tennis and, in the final, claimed a comeback victory over Sloane Stephens (3–6, 6–2, 6–2). At Ukraine WOW, you can see the WTA trophy that Elina won in Singapore.
Yaroslava Mahuchikh is only 24, yet she already stands alongside the legends of athletics. The Ukrainian athlete is a 3-time Diamond League winner, multiple time European champion, and world champion. On July 7, 2024, Mahuchikh pushed her own limit — at a Diamond League stage, she cleared 2.10 meters. This was the best result in athletics history. The previous world record (2.09 meters) set by Bulgaria’s Stefka Kostadinova had stood for 37 years.
2-time Olympic gold medalist, 6-time world champion, 8-time European champion — all this is about Olga Kharlan. In total, she has won 6 different Olympic medals, the most of any Ukrainian athlete.
The saber you see at Ukraine WOW holds a special power. The final match of the women’s fencing competition at the 2024 Olympics was tense for Ukraine. Before the last bout, the team trailed Korea 37–40 — their opponents needed only 5 touches to win. But then Olga Kharlan stepped onto the piste. In just 5 minutes, Olympic gold was ours.
The Ukrainian gaming industry and esports are conquering the world.
The main champions in esports are Natus Vincere (NAVI). Fittingly, the team’s name translates from Latin as “Born to Win.” NAVI’s dominance began back in 2011, when the team became the first world champion by winning The International in Dota 2, taking home a then-record prize of 1 million dollars. By 2024, NAVI had amassed over 64.8 million hours of match viewership — the highest figure for any team worldwide. Overall, NAVI has won more than 120 awards, earned over 20 million dollars in prize money, and built one of the largest fan bases, with over 10 million social media followers.
At Ukraine WOW, you can see the PGL Major Copenhagen 2024 trophy — one of the team’s recent victories in Counter-Strike 2.
In 2001, the revolutionary real-time strategy game by GSC Game World, Cossacks: European Wars, captivated players around the globe. The developer would later deliver an even bigger hit: the legendary S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Shadow of Chernobyl. In 2024, the game received its long-awaited sequel — S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chernobyl. Packed with dozens of Easter eggs celebrating Ukrainian culture, the game sold over 1 million copies within its first 2 days.
Contemporary Ukrainian music is a living organism, evolving alongside the country.
The large-scale festivals of the 1990s — Chervona Ruta and Tavriyski Ihry — nationwide tours by Iryna Bilyk and artists from the Territory A agency, and the hits of that era — from Skryabin and Braty Hadyukiny to Oleksandr Ponomaryov and Ruslana — all define the soundtrack of the early years of independence.
In the 2000s, a talented generation of alternative musicians emerged: Okean Elzy, TNMK, Tartak, Krykhitka Tsakhes, Boombox, Dymna Sumish, and many more. At the same time, Pikkardijska Tertsia established a tradition of high-level vocal performance, which continues today with sold-out shows by the Homin choir.
From the early 2010s to the present, the Ukrainian music scene remains a vibrant palette of talents, genres, and inspiring success stories — not only within the country but also internationally, where our hard rock bands, top DJs, and creative art projects like DakhaBrakha and Dakh Daughters are well known.
At Ukraine WOW, you can see all Ukraine’s Eurovision trophies together for the first time. Ukraine is the first country in the 21st century to win the contest 3 times: Ruslana (2004), Jamala (2016), Kalush Orchestra (2022).
Each victory was a triumph of Ukrainian spirit, exceptional energy, and resilience. However, our artists’ performances almost always receive high praise from audiences, regardless of the final outcome. Since 2014, each of their songs supporting Ukraine have been important elements of cultural diplomacy.
A natural evolution of Ukrainian music was its rise to the country’s main arena — the NSC Olimpiyskiy. In 2014, for the first time in history, a full stadium — nearly 80,000 people — gathered to see Okean Elzy.
The band repeated this triumph twice. Then, in 2019, MONATIK delivered a true spectacle at NSC Olimpiyskiy, combining cutting-edge technology with the power of contemporary dance music. Today, the stadium awaits new grand concerts by Ukrainian artists — events that will surely take place in a peaceful, flourishing, musical Ukraine.
The Cannes Lions are the world’s most prestigious awards in communications, creativity, and advertising. Ukraine began participating in the festival in 2007 and immediately made the shortlist.
However, the first award was won only 10 years later: in 2017, the memorial campaign of the Ukrainian Crisis Media Center for the 75th anniversary of the Babyn Yar tragedy received a Bronze Lion.
Since then, Ukrainian projects have won Lions on an almost annual basis. In June 2025, the creative agency Saatchi & Saatchi Ukraine earned the country’s first Gold Lion for the Minefields Honey campaign, which won in the Decent Work and Economic Growth category. That same year, the 13th season of the The Bachelor reality show, featuring veteran Oleksandr Teren, received Bronze in the Diversity & Inclusion category.
Altogether, Ukraine has now won 13 Cannes Lions, which you see displayed here before you.
