Olga Niekrasova is an award-winning Ukrainian director and screenwriter whose work occupies the intersection of experimental cinema and immersive visual storytelling. Celebrated internationally, her films challenge conventional storytelling through inventive form, rhythm, and visual language. Distinguished by meticulous attention to aesthetic detail and profound emotional depth, Olga invites audiences into cinematic worlds that resonate long after the screen fades to black.
What was your initial inspiration to become a filmmaker and screenwriter?
My initial inspiration to pursue filmmaking and screenwriting came from an unexpected experience on the set of a film directed by an established filmmaker in 2019.I had joined as an extra, curious to see the director at work, and ended up appearing briefly in the trailer. But it was what happened behind the camera that truly ignited me.
I remember the controlled chaos of the set — lights flashing, cameras rolling, crew moving like a well-oiled machine, actors inhabiting their worlds — and feeling the electricity of it all. The intensity, the emotion, and the collaborative energy in that space were overwhelming in the best way. In that moment, I felt a spark: this was the feeling I wanted to create, capture, and share through my own work. It was a moment of recognition — a visceral understanding that filmmaking wasn’t just storytelling; it was an immersive, emotional experience, and I wanted my life’s work to be devoted to crafting it.
How did your experience as a writer influence your approach to directing your recent films, Valise and Shadows?
Starting as a writer before becoming a director has greatly shaped my approach to filmmaking. Writing a screenplay requires a deep investment of time and thought — sometimes weeks, months, or even years — to craft a piece ready for production. This process of visualizing the story, considering every nuance, and attending carefully to even the smallest details naturally informs my directing. By the time I begin directing, I have already imagined the textures, rhythms, and movements of each scene, which allows me to guide the overall cinematic experience and ensure that the emotional and narrative intent of the script is fully realized.
Valise, for instance, is based on my short story of the same title, which I condensed slightly for production. The original story includes a few additional memories, and I hope to one day adapt it into a stage play, allowing the narrative to take on a new life in a different medium.
Can you share your experiences participating in various international film festivals? Which festival had the most significant impact on you?
Film festivals are crucial early on — they offer visibility, validation, and connections that open doors to new collaborations and audiences.
That said, I believe it’s equally important to think beyond the festival circuit. While festivals can give your career momentum, they should not be the only measure of a film’s life or success. With persistence and creativity, filmmakers can build their own ecosystems of presentation and dialogue that are just as meaningful and far-reaching.
What draws you to create experimental films, and how do you define success in this genre?
Every film I create begins with a feeling — a singular emotion, question, or sensation that insists on being expressed. That feeling becomes the seed from which everything else grows. Once I begin to understand its contours, I start shaping the visual and sonic world around it. Images, objects, sounds, and gestures are chosen not only for their narrative clarity but for their ability to carry emotional weight. Each element is recruited to serve the central feeling, creating a sensory coherence that allows the audience not just to observe, but to inhabit the emotion.
I’m drawn to experimental filmmaking because it offers a language that mirrors how emotions and memories truly move — in fragments, loops, and echoes rather than in straight lines. Life, memory, and trust are not linear experiences, and traditional narratives can sometimes flatten those delicate, shifting states. Through movement, materiality, and abstraction, experimental film allows me to evoke the subtleties of vulnerability, intimacy, and recollection in a way that feels honest to how they exist within us.
That said, my practice extends beyond experimental work — I also pursue conventional and hybrid film projects that intertwine narrative, visual, and performative vocabularies. Each concept determines its own form, and I move fluidly between structured storytelling and exploratory modes to uncover the most resonant expression of an emotion or idea.
As for success, I define it through transformation — when the work continues to live beyond my hands. Seeing my films screened in cinemas, festivals, galleries, or even political institutions affirms that their emotional language resonates across different contexts. That circulation extends the life of the film, allowing it to keep unfolding in new ways, with each viewer finding their own reflection within it.
Can you walk us through your creative process when writing a screenplay?
For me, creativity is about translating an inner emotion, question, or observation into a tangible sensory experience. I try to see the world not just as it is, but as it could feel. My writing process becomes a dialogue between imagination and material — transforming objects, gestures, and textures into emotional language that the audience can inhabit.
Because creativity feels multisensory to me, I think about more than just story or dialogue. I imagine how a frame might feel, how sound could resonate with movement, or how light interacts with a surface. By layering these sensory cues as I write, I’m not just building scenes — I’m shaping an immersive emotional experience that invites the audience to feel the story rather than simply watch it.
How important is collaboration with other filmmakers and artists in your projects?
Collaboration is an exciting and essential part of filmmaking — it’s something you can’t avoid. To have the most joyful and fruitful experience, it’s important to be on the same wavelength with your collaborators and share a common understanding of trust. This mutual trust is vital, as it allows everyone to contribute their creativity fully and ensures the project can reach its full potential. When collaboration is grounded in respect, openness, and shared vision, it not only strengthens the work but also makes the creative process deeply rewarding.
How do you hope audiences will respond to your films, and what messages do you aim to convey?
I hope audiences connect with my films on both an emotional and reflective level, entering the intimate spaces I create to experience the fragility, strength, and hope inherent in human experience. I want viewers to reflect on the connections that bind us, even in moments of upheaval and loss, and to leave with a heightened awareness of the delicate balance between vulnerability and resilience, how love and trust can endure despite adversity, and the quiet yet profound courage that sustains us in times of uncertainty. Ultimately, my goal is to create a space where audiences can not only witness but inhabit these emotional truths, engaging with the films in a way that resonates long after the screening ends and inspires reflection on their own relationships, memories, and experiences.
How does your background and culture influence your storytelling and themes in your films?
Working across film, photography, poetry, and mixed media enables me to explore ideas from multiple angles. Each medium informs the other: the compositional awareness from photography influences framing in film; poetic sensibilities shape rhythm and pacing; experimental materials inspire narrative structures. This cross-disciplinary dialogue expands the vocabulary I use to convey complex emotional and thematic content.
My background and culture deeply inform my approach to storytelling, particularly through the use of poetic and visual language. Poetry, in particular, enables me to communicate emotional truth without reducing it to rhetoric, creating space for nuance, ambiguity, and intimacy.
The fascination with memory, vulnerability, and the fragmented nature of experience finds its fullest expression in Valise, an experimental short that follows a young boy attempting to preserve his childhood amid the chaos of war. Through a visual language that blends abstraction and tangible reality, the film explores loss and resilience, transforming fleeting memories into a narrative that is at once intimate, poignant, and universal. By centering the child’s perspective, Valise embodies my commitment to capturing emotional truth, the subtle textures of lived experience, and the quiet strength of the human spirit — a sensibility that continues to shape my work in Shadows.
In Shadows, for example, the harsh reality of the forced deportation of Ukrainian children is urgent, yet abstraction — through space, light, and composition — transforms the narrative into a meditation on love, loss, and resilience. Poetic symbolism deepens the emotional impact, inviting empathy and reflection, while the political context keeps the work grounded in reality.
Ukrainian children experience war and displacement with an immediacy and vulnerability that is uncompromising. They perceive danger, loss, and upheaval in ways that are raw and unfiltered. By centering their perspective, I invite audiences into a profoundly personal space of empathy, where the emotional weight of war can be felt rather than simply understood. Through a child’s gaze, viewers can sense how war shapes memory, identity, and resilience. By focusing on Ukrainian children and families in Valise and Shadows, I aim to portray not only heartbreak and fear but also the quiet perseverance and resilience of the human spirit, offering audiences an intimate connection to lives too often reduced to statistics or distant reports.
Are there any upcoming projects or films you are particularly excited about?
I am currently working on a new short animated film as both writer and director, with visuals generated using AI and edited by a professional editor. The project is incredibly exciting and challenging, as it requires a different approach to storytelling and a new way of thinking about the creative process. I’m learning a great deal through this experiment, from conceptualizing visuals to integrating technology into narrative expression. It’s been a stimulating journey, and I’m eagerly looking forward to seeing the final cut and how all the elements come together.
What challenges have you faced as a female director in the film industry, and how have you overcome them?
Challenges are always present, but they can also be exciting opportunities to test the limits of what you can achieve. Facing difficulties often sharpens focus and drives one to pursue accomplishment rather than fear of failure. For me, the strongest guiding force has always been my inner motivation: the drive to create films and make a contribution. This commitment to the work itself serves as my engine, helping me navigate obstacles while staying true to the core purpose of storytelling. By centering the creative process and the impact of the films, I am able to move forward with determination and clarity, letting my passion for the work outweigh external challenges.
What motivated you to explore animation in your film Ball of Yarn=Trust, and how does it differ from your previous works?
Ball of Yarn=Trust is an experimental short animation exploring the fragile and complex nature of trust. Inspired by my poem of the same title, the film uses a ball of yarn as a metaphor — soft, warm, and comforting, yet easily unraveled. When it falls or unravels, it mirrors how trust can be disrupted or lost, raising questions about whether it can be rebuilt or transformed.
Unlike my previous works, this animation blends hand-drawn elements with real-world objects, creating a tactile and abstract visual language. The textures of yarn, juxtaposed with ethereal drawings, invite viewers to feel trust both physically and emotionally. Through this experimental approach, the film transforms an everyday concept into a sensory meditation, encouraging reflection on the beauty and vulnerability inherent in human connection.
What advice would you give to aspiring filmmakers and writers looking to break into the industry?
Know how much of yourself you are willing to give to your films and your dreams. Be persistent and take risks. Authenticity, dedication, and openness to learning are what will help you find your voice and make your mark.
What role do you believe films play in shaping societal views and conversations?
I believe films have the power to create intimate emotional experiences that foster empathy and reflection, shaping societal views by allowing audiences to inhabit perspectives they might not otherwise encounter. By engaging viewers on both an emotional and reflective level, cinema can illuminate the complexities of human emotion, encourage dialogue, and inspire deeper understanding. Films can challenge assumptions, reveal shared vulnerabilities, and highlight the strength of the human spirit, showing how, even in moments of upheaval or hardship, hope and perseverance endure.
