The lineup includes a wide range of genres—from war dramas and animation to comedies and coming-of-age stories—comprising short films produced in 2025 and 2026.
Selected entries include films that have participated in international festivals such as Venice and Rotterdam, as well as new works featuring Ukrainian actors including Maryna Koshkina, Anastasiia Karpenko, Dariia Polunina, Hennadii Popenko, and Oleksandr Bykov.
Directors presenting new films in the competition include Vadym Mochalov, Liubov Bekhter, Polina Biliaieva, Oleksandr Bykov, and Viacheslav Turianytsia.
National Short Film Competition lineup:
Gate of Europe, directed by Oleksii Chubun (Ukraine, Czech Republic, 9 min, 2025)
Revival, directed by Oleksandr Bykov (Ukraine, 17 min, 2025)
Giant, directed by Vadym Mochalov (Ukraine, 17 min, 2026)
Live Forever, directed by Vladyslav Deva (Poland, 14 min, 2025)
Life in Ukraine Be Like, directed by Illia Horokhovskyi (Ukraine, 15 min, 2025)
Yellow and Blue Butterflies, directed by Yelyzaveta Holubenko (Ukraine, 12 min, 2025)
Ovary, directed by Nataliia Suprun (Ukraine, 15 min, 2025)
Conspiracy, directed by Kostiantyn Demborynskyi (Ukraine, 16 min, 2025)
From the Inside, directed by Dariia Lukasheva (Ukraine, 20 min, 2026)
A Brief Guide to Breaking Up, directed by Varvara Zarytska (Ukraine, Poland, 15 min, 2025)
The Unreachable, directed by Kyrylo Zemlianyi (Ukraine, Belgium, Bulgaria, France, Netherlands, 19 min, 2025)
Misunderstanding, directed by Iryna Sosimovych (Ukraine, 7 min, 2025)
Natural Balance, directed by Oleksandr Myroniuk (Ukraine, 24 min, 2026)
Reflections on Peace During an Air Raid, directed by Viacheslav Turianytsia (Ukraine, 15 min, 2025)
Tell Me a Fairy Tale, directed by Diana Anikieieva (Ukraine, 22 min, 2026)
Phantom, directed by Yuliia Orlenko (Ukraine, 17 min, 2025)
This Is Horror, directed by Liubov Bekhter (Ukraine, 25 min, 2026)
FUCK THEM ALL, directed by Polina Biliaieva (Ukraine, Poland, 15 min, 2025)
This year marks the first time the competition will be judged not only by audiences but also by a professional jury.
The jury includes actors Rymma Ziubina and Irma Vitovska-Vantsa, filmmaker and serviceman Akhtem Seitablaiev, actor and host Oleksii Hnatkovskyi, BAFTA-winning producer Haider Rothschild Hoozir, and screenwriter and playwright Serhii Kulybyshev.
The festival has supported Ukrainian short films for four consecutive years and aims to encourage emerging filmmakers to continue developing their work, general producer Oleksa Hladushevskyi said.
The competition reflects the growth of Ukrainian filmmakers, many of whom move on to larger projects such as feature films and television series, he added.
Winners of the National Competition will receive the Iron Mykolaichuk award, with the best film selected by the jury and the Grand Prix determined by audience voting.
Additional awards include a jury prize and a special award from AMO Pictures, the general partner of the industry section.
The Mykolaichuk OPEN festival will take place in Chernivtsi from June 13 to June 20.