While we are finalizing the competition selection for the festival in Vienna, we are worried about our friends and colleagues in Kyiv, Lviv and other cities of Ukraine. Our thoughts are with them and their families and we unconditionally support those who are currently resisting and denouncing the unacceptable attack by Russia.

In light of the circumstances and in full solidarity with Ukraine, we have decided not to allow any state-funded films from Russia and Belarus to be shown at the festival this year, as well as any films that represent the official Russian state doctrine. Official representatives of the country are also not welcome at the 2022 festival.

At the same time, we feel connected to our friends in Russia who have recently been imprisoned for publishing animations against the war or who are courageously speaking out against the war elsewhere––or who have simply been financing their films independently and without support from official Russia for a long time.

Our boycott is accordingly directed against Vladimir Putin's regime and against those films that have been financed by public bodies in Russia and supported by the official side. On the other hand, we do not want to reduce independent artists from Russia to their passports and offer them a platform at the festival.

As Stefan Zweig says, “Only those who can look into the future without worry can properly enjoy the present”. The “world of yesterday” has changed permanently with the Russian attack, worries about the future characterize the present. Nevertheless, it is important not to lose hope that the war and the suffering in Ukraine will soon come to an end.

Doris Bauer & Daniel Ebner
Festival Directors VIENNA SHORTS

News 17.3.2022