T-Port Blog

Polina Piddubna is a Ukrainian filmmaker who has been living in Germany since 2019. Their film MY GRANDMOTHER IS A SKYDIVER premiered at Cannes and was selected for the prestigious First Steps Award. 

We caught up with the filmmaker to talk about the impact of war on her storytelling, how she discovered filmmaking, and exploring the legacy of a skydiving grandma.

Hi Polina, could you please introduce yourself and your work?

Originally, I am from Kharkiv, Ukraine, and have been living in Germany since 2019. I discovered my passion for filmmaking as a teenager and started working on my first stop-motion film at the age of 13. Since then, I have worked on many different projects, but the first high-quality animated short film that I directed and produced is my bachelor film “My Grandmother is a Skydiver,” which premiered this year in Cannes.

How did you realise that you wanted to become a filmmaker?

As a teenager, I had a lot of problems at school and was quite lonely. At the same time, I used to watch lots of films, including animations. I’ve learned so much from them and they have inspired me so much. One day, I realised that I could also create films and empower others with my storytelling.

Do you have a philosophy behind your filmmaking? Or do you feel like you belong to a particular artistic movement from the present day or past? Could you tell us about it?

In my art, I always try to address socially relevant topics. Of course, the political situation in the world and the consequences of war directly impact me and my loved ones, so it’s impossible for me not to be affected by them in my perception of the world and my films. I would say that I belong to a movement of people from marginalised backgrounds who still have the privilege of creating art and sharing their voice, and that’s what I am trying to do.

If you could watch one film on a loop forever, what would it be? 

I think it wouldn’t be possible for me to watch something forever, haha. I would probably get sick of it.

Where did the ideas / inspiration for your film come from?

The idea for the film came about in early 2022, in January. I started to take a deeper interest in my grandmother’s life. She played volleyball, and did parachute jumping when she was young, which was very popular in Tajikistan at the time.

At first, I wanted to make a film with a focus on a feminist interpretation of her story. But then the full-scale invasion began, and the meaning shifted. I realized that every generation in our family had suffered from imperial policies — from displacement, wars, and repression. First under the Russian Empire, then under the Soviet Union and now the Russian Federation.

So the film became not just a portrait of my grandmother but also a chronicle of a collective history. It’s the story of a strong woman, but also an attempt to capture the experience of entire regions — Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, Central and Northern Asia. Of people who have lived through colonial trauma — and I wanted to bring all of that together in the film.

What were the biggest challenges you encountered during making your film?

There were so many challenges at every stage of production. First of all, my personal challenge was to keep going despite the war and the triggers and trauma I am experiencing. 

There were many difficulties in conducting the research, gathering and analyzing information, and finding the right perspective. 

During pre-production, I had to develop the script and the right visualization; during production, I had to navigate all the processes and manage the film as a producer while not losing my artistic vision as the director. In post-production, I faced the challenges of finalizing the exports and DCP. And now, I am striving to survive amid the competition in the festival world haha.

Can you share the most important lessons you learned through the process of making the film? 

Believe in your intuition and artistic vision.

If you could go back in time to pre-production and give yourself one piece of advice, what would it be? 

Not to be anxious all the time, and to enjoy the process of research and discovery.

Where were you when you found out about your nomination for the First Steps Award? How did you react?

I was in Ukraine, in my hometown of Kharkiv, at the time and was trying to arrange a screening of my film with the city council. I was waiting in the reception of the Ministry of Culture when I received an unexpected call from Germany with the news about my nomination. I was very happy.

How did it feel to become a part of the First Steps Award, and how has it impacted you as a filmmaker?

I felt very happy and honored to be selected, as it’s the only opportunity to be nominated with your graduation film — there’s no second chance. I met many professionals from the industry, with whom I hope to collaborate in the future, and I learned a lot during the educational events. The nomination definitely empowered me.

If you were to have infinite resources – walk us through your fantasy film project

Feature film, series, short film, installation, educational projects — there are so many ideas!

What’s next for you on the filmmaking front?

Right now, I’m working on a concept for an exhibition that will also include an experimental analog film, though it will lean more toward nonlinear video art. We’ll see. This will be my master’s project, so I want to experiment more. I also really want to start working on my first professional short film and am actively looking for ideas and opportunities

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