Film short abstract:

A story about 'Turning Death Into Life' - Icons on Ammo Boxes transform the military rubbish smelling of death into life-affirming art. The story follows artists and volunteers from around the globe as they accompany paramedics and officers in Ukraine since 2022 in Kyiv, Bucha, Gostomel, Irpin, etc.

Film long abstract:

“The Saints Are Watching” documentary is based on "Icons on Ammo Boxes: Transformation of Death into Life" project that recently had its national premiere at the Human Rights film festival: Inconvenient Films, where it garnered a strong and positive reception both from critics and audiences. It has also been nominated as Best Documentary Film at Buzz IF Festival in Romania and was also screened at the ADOX Documentary Film Festival.

Ukrainian artist Oleksandr Klimenko and his wife Sofia Atlantova have been painting icons on ammunition boxes since the annexation of Crimea in 2014. The icons of saints transform the military rubbish smelling of brutality into faithful art. The film tells a powerful story about “turning death into life,” showcasing how icons painted on ammunition boxes transform military rubbish, which smells of death, into life-affirming art. It beautifully intertwines themes of resilience and creativity, following a Ukrainian artist Oleksandr Klimenko who finds profound meaning during the invasion he experienced. Oleksandr and volunteers from different parts of the globe accompany paramedics and officers, encounter regular residents and observe the conditions in Kyiv, Bucha, Gostomel, Irpin, Borodyanka, Chernihiv, and other territories in Ukraine since the full-scale invasion in February 2022. The images are complemented by sensitive stories of people who had to face the horrors of war in silence – the real heroes of this war.

The film’s production is supported by the National Broadcaster LRT and the Lithuanian Film Center.