"These films are not about events. They are about structures that allow violence to happen."

For our fifth season, Ukrainian Spaces returns to where it began: revisiting six Ukrainians from the 2022 inaugural season to see how hope, resistance, and resilience have shaped their lives. Across six episodes—fear, belonging, language, love, resistance, and the future—our guests reflect on the past, share intimate stories, and write letters to their former selves. A return and continuation, this season reminds us that Ukraine’s story is best told by Ukrainians themselves.

In this episode of the season, Ukrainian Spaces reconnects with a Ukrainian filmmaker and writer, Oleksiy Radynski. He joins Maksym and Val to reflect on how analytical thinking and creative work became his ways to endure the anxiety and chaos of the full-scale invasion. What started as an effort to stay focused grew into award-winning films and viral texts that document russian war crimes and dismantle russian imperial myths.

Through his wartime films Chornobyl-22, Special Operation, and Where Russia Ends, Radynski examines how empire operates through space, ecology, and silence, moving beyond conventional war storytelling. He also speaks about silent resistance, memory, and why art and storytelling remain one of Ukraine’s most persistent forms of anti-colonial resistance.

The episode closes with a message from Oleksiy to his 2022 self: empires will fall, but none can be trusted to undo another.

Ukrainian Spaces is more than a podcast; it's a movement. It's about reclaiming the Ukrainian story, breaking free from outdated Ukrainian stereotypes, and understanding the complex roots of Ukraine's present and future. Together, we can unravel the threads of Ukrainian history and witness the unwavering spirit of a nation fighting for its right to exist.

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This season, Ukrainian Spaces returns in partnership with Ukrainska Pravda – one of Ukraine’s most trusted voices for truth and freedom. Stand with independent Ukrainian journalism. You can also make a donation through their website or join their Patreon community. Every contribution keeps the story alive.