In January 2026, the French Cinematheque will present its first major retrospective of one of the most significant filmmakers of the 20th century, Oleksandr Dovzhenko. The event will take place as part of the Ukraine Season in France, Voyage to Ukraine, with the support of the Dovzhenko Centre and at the initiative of the Ukrainian Institute and its French representation, the Institut ukrainien en France.
The retrospective will focus on the lyrical and elevated cinema of Dovzhenko, in particular his Ukrainian trilogy — Earth, Arsenal, and Zvenigora. Despite historical upheavals and the repression of the Stalinist regime, the director created a unique cinematic language that fused poetry, myth, and political expression. As critic Barthélemy Amengual noted, Dovzhenko “did not reproduce reality — he proclaimed it”.<>
The programme will include screenings of landmark films, lectures, discussions, and film concerts with live musical accompaniment. Special events will feature Earth with music by DakhaBrakha and Arsenal with music by Nova Materia. The films will be introduced by Ukrainian film scholars Olena Honcharuk, Anna Onufriyenko, and Alyona Penziy.
The Oleksandr Dovzhenko retrospective aims to present classical Ukrainian cinema in an international context and to rediscover an artist whose work continues to resonate today.