Thank You, Kyoto!

On behalf of the Embassy of Ukraine in Japan, Ukraine House Japan, SWUJ, and festival curator Daria Panchuk, we extend our sincere gratitude to everyone who contributed to organizing and holding the Ukrainian Film Festival in Kyoto!

On October 17–18, 2026, the Ukrainian Film Festival took place at the Museum of Kyoto (京都文化博物館). Over the two days, more than 250 people came to watch Ukrainian films, explore Ukrainian culture, and participate in conversations and cultural exchanges.

The festival brought meaningful encounters, thoughtful discussions, and a wonderful sense of warmth and friendship. We felt once again that Ukraine has true friends in Japan.

We were honored to welcome Mr. Kunimitsu Imai, Director-General for International Policy of Kyoto City, who delivered an opening address on the first day of the festival. We sincerely appreciate his presence and kind words.

Our special gratitude goes to the Museum of Kyoto, Ms. Oya, Mr. Kiyotaka Moriwaki, and the entire museum team for their hospitality, thoughtful assistance, and support throughout the preparation and the two days of the festival. We were delighted to hold the screenings in the museum's beautiful film theatre.

We sincerely thank Professor Yutaka Uenishi for sharing his knowledge and insights with our audience and helping deepen their understanding of Ukrainian history and culture.

We are especially grateful to our interpreter, Olga Balynska, whose professionalism, dedication, and invaluable assistance were indispensable throughout both days of the festival. Her work helped speakers and audiences communicate and understand one another.

We extend our sincere thanks to Olena Sigal, our volunteer coordinator, for organizing the volunteer team and supporting the festival.

We are also deeply grateful to our volunteers — Iryna Yaremenko, Iryna Pastukh, Danylo Myhdalskyi, Ryoga Fukuyama, Yu Nishimoto, Taeko Ota, and Yasuhiro Kiyosawa — for their time, dedication, and invaluable help throughout the festival.

We also thank the Second Wind team for their participation, dedication, and support.
Our special thanks also go to ZenGroup photographer Andriy Magdych for capturing the memorable moments of our festival.

And, of course, our heartfelt thanks go to everyone who took the time to join us, watch Ukrainian films, and share these two days with us. Your interest in and openness to Ukrainian culture give special meaning to our work.

We look forward to seeing you again! 💙💛