Awards Archives - ECG Productions

While Kolya Is on the Stage

kvnkvn — Wed, 25 Mar 2026 02:30:50 +0000

Nikolai Terentiev is a mime clown of the legendary Snow Show.
A man who speaks without words.

Vera Pavlova is a poet.
A woman who explains love through language.

While Kolya steps onto the stage,
Vera remains at her desk.

The quiet of a hotel room.
A laptop. Drafts.
Work that requires not applause, but concentration.

She is writing a new book —
365 pages.
365 poems.
365 declarations of love.

One confession a day.
Each poem an attempt to hold a feeling
within the boundaries of a line.

If Kolya speaks through movement and silence,
Vera speaks through rhythm and breath.

He walks toward the audience in the light of the stage.
She walks toward the reader through the page.

Our film is about two ways of speaking about love.
Two forms of vulnerability.
About how play and language are both forms of labor —
daily, disciplined, real.

Sometimes applause fills a theatre.
Sometimes it happens quietly, inside a text.

#myfriendkolya
#ECGProductions
#ветераныдетства
#verapavlova
#nikolaiterentiev
#olgaantimony

The post While Kolya Is on the Stage appeared first on ECG Productions.

Before the Curtain Rises

kvnkvn — Fri, 13 Mar 2026 19:51:32 +0000

The theatre hall is still empty.
The stage is waiting.

Kolya is preparing for another performance of the Snow Show.
Here he is — still without makeup. Just a man in front of a mirror.

Slowly, the image begins to appear.
First the funny clown eyebrows.
Then the eyes — slightly more open, slightly more astonished.
Then the mouth.

And, of course, the famous red nose.
And the torn gloves.

But this is not just makeup.
It is a passage.

Each time before stepping onto the stage, the same thing happens:
a person gathers himself anew —
into the one who will speak without words.

The mask does not hide.
It reveals.

A clown is not someone who simply makes people laugh.
He is someone who allows himself to be fragile in front of everyone.

Our film is about what happens before the applause.
About the moment when a grown person chooses to become a child again —
and walks toward the audience without protection.

#myfriendkolya
#ECGProductions
#ветераныдетства
#verapavlova
#nikolaiterentiev
#olgaantimony

The post Before the Curtain Rises appeared first on ECG Productions.

When Collecting Becomes a Story — Filming Continues on Shadows of Ukiyo-e

kvnkvn — Fri, 13 Mar 2026 19:02:11 +0000

On March 5–6, the ECG Productions team, under the direction of Maxim Kravchinsky, completed an important filming stage for the upcoming documentary Shadows of Ukiyo-e.

Our main character, collector Tim Kachurov, met with University of Toronto anthropology professor Katie Kilroy-Marac for an intense two-hour conversation about the nature of collecting — its beauty, its meaning, and its darker sides. This thoughtful dialogue will become a key foundation of the film.

We also filmed two opening scenes for the project. For these scenes, Tim Kachurov brought an authentic Japanese kimono, adding a striking visual and historical element to the beginning of the film.

Filming continues.

March 23 — Tim Kachurov will visit our studio.
March 24 — we will film an exciting real auction, where our main character will take part.

Stay tuned for more behind-the-scenes updates from Shadows of Ukiyo-e.

The post When Collecting Becomes a Story — Filming Continues on Shadows of Ukiyo-e appeared first on ECG Productions.

Veterans of Childhood

kvnkvn — Thu, 05 Mar 2026 05:18:44 +0000

Quebec. Frost. Icicles hanging from a tree.
The mime Nikolai Terentiev stops before them as if they were not ice, but a secret.

An adult would walk past.
A child would stare.
An artist begins to play.

Poet Vera Pavlova films him for their YouTube channel Veterans of Childhood:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HeoZo-TJroM

And we film them both.
The camera captures not a prank, but a state of being.

In this triple reflection lies the structure of our film:
one person looks at the world,
another looks at him,
and somewhere between them meaning appears.

Later, Vera writes:

“Why is it forbidden to suck icicles?
Does that mean their name is a lie?
You are already old enough to be my grandson,
my rickety childhood…”

The icicle is not about ice.
It is about the line between “allowed” and “forbidden.”
Between age and freedom.
Between a body that grows older
and the inner child that refuses to obey time.

Our film is not about nostalgia.
It is about resisting erasure.
About the right to play when the world demands seriousness.
About childhood not as a stage of life,
but as a way of being.

Sometimes philosophy begins with an icicle.

#myfriendkolya
#ECGProductions
#ветераныдетства
#verapavlova
#nikolaiterentiev
#olgaantimony
#IvanKyba
#VladimirStrungar

The post Veterans of Childhood appeared first on ECG Productions.

Code 4.5.0 in Ludwig-Van Toronto

kvnkvn — Wed, 04 Mar 2026 05:29:15 +0000

We’re honoured to share that Ludwig-Van Toronto has featured Code 4.5.0 (Directed by Olena Tumanska ) alongside the debut album release of Daughters of Donbas

A huge thank you to Anya Wassenberg, the author of this article, and Ludwig-Van Toronto for highlighting this important story and for recognizing the powerful connection between music and documentary storytelling.

We’re especially grateful to Canadian media platforms for amplifying Ukrainian voices and stories at this critical time.

Read the full article — link

Thank you to everyone who continues to support meaningful cinema and independent music.

The post Code 4.5.0 in Ludwig-Van Toronto appeared first on ECG Productions.

Flight on Ice

kvnkvn — Tue, 03 Mar 2026 06:10:53 +0000

The first filming day of My Friend Kolya.

Poet Vera Pavlova and mime-clown Nikolai Terentiev, an artist of the legendary Snow Show.
He is a man of movement and silence.
She is a woman of words and paradox.

This is a film about two artists who live in the space of play — and never stop being children.

Kolya put on ice skates at the age of 70 — thanks to Vera.
And he mastered them seriously.
Now, whenever they travel or tour, they look for an ice rink and take flight.

Before stepping onto the ice, Kolya tenderly ties Vera’s laces.
A bright, frosty day.
Rosy cheeks.

And Vera writes:

“Laces wrap around the hooks.
Blades glitter in the sun.
My favorite shoes — skates.
I step onto the ice — and I am in childhood.”

During filming, our cinematographer Ivan Kiba almost lost the drone — frost, sun, open space. He found it, wading through knee-deep snow.
And the flight continued — in the sky and on the ice.

Our film is about a childhood that never ends.
About love as a daily act of play.
About beginning something new at seventy — and taking off.

This is how My Friend Kolya begins.
With movement. With trust. With flight.

#myfriendkolya
#verapavlova
#nikolaiterentiev
#ECGProductions
#olgaantimony

The post Flight on Ice appeared first on ECG Productions.

Code 450 screening update

kvnkvn — Tue, 24 Feb 2026 05:12:47 +0000

On behalf of ECG Productions, we are proud to share that the screening of the documentary film Code 4.5.0. took place alongside the album release of our film’s main character, Marichka – Daughters of Donbas.

It was an evening of two premieres united by one powerful theme — memory, resilience, and a voice that continues to be heard even in the darkest times.

Among our honored guests were:

— Representatives of CBC Channel

— Advisor to the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights (Office of Dmytro Lubinets)

We sincerely thank everyone who made these two premieres possible.

Special thanks to the performers —
Marichka, Alina Kuzma, Zoë Ëoz, Maria Gurak, Rachel Melas, Charlee Wielgoz, Kostianiuk Olga —
for their strength on stage, artistry, and shared vision.

Written & Directed by Olena Tumanska

Director of Photography

Camera Operators
Ivan Kyba
Vladimir Strungar
Vladislav Posudevskiy

Marichka

Danylo Tuzov

Film Crew in Ukraine
Alla Mazhara
Andrei Mekh
Roman Kryukov

Sound Miroslav Delev
Editor / Post-Production Supervisor / Sound Design Oleksiy Buyanov
Composer Marichka

Music Producer Daniel Rosenberg — Grammy-awarded music producer
Music by Marichka
Lyrics Izdryk, Marichka
Arrangement Viktor Cherniavskyi

Performing Musicians
Marichka — vocals, piano
Maria Gurak — backing vocals
Olga Kostianyuk — violin
Zoë Santo — viola
Lusine Navoyan — cello
Natalie Kemerer — double bass

Video Materials Provided By
Viktor Tkachenko
Oleksii Serdega
Danylo Tuzov

Special Thanks

Gregory Antimony for make this film happened
Marichka
Gnom (call sign)
Makar (call sign)
Borzyi (call sign)
Soldiers of the 100th Separate Mechanized Brigade
Oksana Smilska
Bohdan Petrychuk and family
Zakabluk family

This is another step toward the day when “4.5.0.” will mean peace for the entire Ukraine.

The post Code 450 screening update appeared first on ECG Productions.

From Grinder to Smokehouse — New Scenes from “Between Heaven and Earth”

kvnkvn — Tue, 24 Feb 2026 05:07:05 +0000

Our ECG Productions team is continuing work on the project “Between Heaven and Earth” , directed by our colleague Maxim Kravchinsky , with Director of Photography Artem Borodin .

This documentary follows the life of Father Jovan Marjanac, a Serbian Orthodox priest from Ontario , and his family .

On February 18 , the crew traveled to Northern Ontario , where our main character, together with friends, was making sausages — a long and labor-intensive tradition filled with care, skill, and community .

The process begins with preparing the meat in special industrial grinders . Then it is divided into containers , and ingredients are added: salt, pepper, and sometimes even whiskey , according to a secret recipe .

Depending on the proportions of spices , the sausages differ in flavor and color . After that, they are taken to a special smokehouse , where they hang for the first day and are then smoked with warm smoke for another two days .

But they will not be served right away — March is the season of Lent before Easter . These delicacies will be shared with guests only in mid-April .

A beautiful tradition , a meaningful journey , and another chapter in the story of faith , family , and everyday life .

#ECGProductions #BetweenHeavenAndEarth #DocumentaryFilm #BehindTheScenes #MaximKravchinsky #ArtemBorodin #FatherJovanMarjanac #SerbianOrthodox #Ontario #NorthernOntario #Filmmaking #Documentary

The post From Grinder to Smokehouse — New Scenes from “Between Heaven and Earth” appeared first on ECG Productions.

Day Two on “Sunflowers on Bloor”

kvnkvn — Fri, 20 Feb 2026 19:14:40 +0000

A special shoutout to our ECG Productions team for another meaningful day of filming, under the direction of our colleague Anastasiia Mateshko.

Today, we went deeper into the history of the Bloor West Village Toronto Ukrainian Festival. We had the privilege of interviewing one of the festival’s founders, Raya Shadurska, and capturing an inside look at a committee meeting helping shape the festival’s future.

Grateful to everyone sharing their time, stories, and vision with us. This project is about memory, community, and the people who keep traditions alive.

#ECGProductions #SunflowersOnBloor #BloorWestVillage #TorontoUkrainianFestival #UkrainianCommunity #DocumentaryFilmmaking #TorontoFilm #BehindTheScenes

The post Day Two on “Sunflowers on Bloor” appeared first on ECG Productions.

Our film about Giya Kancheli was screened in Los Angeles

kvnkvn — Thu, 19 Feb 2026 19:00:24 +0000

The film continues to live on and find audiences in different countries.

This was the last film made during the composer’s lifetime. Giya Kancheli passed away in 2019, and it means a great deal to us that he personally took part in the creation of this documentary: he helped organize the filming, gave us a tour of his apartment, invited us to a recording session and to the Rustaveli Theatre. We filmed him at work, among friends, within the living atmosphere of his city.

He showed us Tbilisi — the place from which, as he said, “you can see the soul of Georgia.”
He even followed the editing process closely and intervened in the montage.

Another key figure in the film is Canadian clarinetist Julian Milkis, who introduced us to Kancheli. As a child emigrating from the Soviet Union, Milkis had never encountered Kancheli’s music. Years later, driving to one of his own concerts, he heard Kancheli on the radio for the first time. The music moved him so deeply that he almost missed his performance.

They later met at a festival. When Milkis invited Kancheli to attend his concert, the composer replied with characteristic irony:
“Thank you, you are a charming young man — but I hate clarinet.”

We are grateful that this story — about music, encounter, and time — continues to resonate.

#GiyaKancheli
#JulianMilkis
#OlgaAntimony
#DocumentaryFilm
#ECGProductions
#LosAngeles
#GeorgiaMusic
#laindependentfilmchannelfestival

The post Our film about Giya Kancheli was screened in Los Angeles appeared first on ECG Productions.