TORONTO – The official launch of the multi-award-winning feature documentary “Recovery Room” on DVD was held at The Old Mill in Toronto on September 23.
The special event sponsored by BCU (Buduchnist Credit Union) Foundation gave an opportunity for participants of the Canada-Ukraine Foundation (CUF) medical missions to Ukraine and their family to celebrate the documentary’s release and be the first to receive a copy.
Opening remarks were given by the film’s director, Adriana Luhovy, who thanked BCU Foundation for sponsoring the event. She thanked the mission team members for their presence and their continued dedication to humanitarian aid missions in Ukraine. She stated how fortunate she was to be able to document their work and the impact of the war, and expressed gratitude to those that helped make the film.
Roman Medyk, president of BCU Foundation, stated how proud BCU is to have supported the documentary project. Mr. Medyk noted that sometimes the best initiatives evolve unplanned, due to unique circumstances, just as Ms. Luhovy’s original role of photographer on the mission quickly expanded.
Mr. Medyk mentioned that while Ms. Luhovy was in the Main Clinical Military Hospital in Kyiv as photographer, she noticed that the story of the war in eastern Ukraine and the humanitarian aid provided was not being told. In addition to doing photography, Ms. Luhovy began to also film and conduct interviews with the Canadian and Ukrainian medical teams performing operations, and to interview the wounded Ukrainian soldiers.
Twenty-two months later, with editor Yurij Luhovy, she completed the documentary that is being shown in cities across Canada, the U.S. and other countries, helping to raise public awareness of the ongoing war and human costs.
Victor Hetmanczuk, chair of the Canada-Ukraine Foundation, thanked Ms. Luhovy for her work and spoke about the continued needs in Ukraine to help wounded soldiers suffering psychological effects of the war and post-traumatic stress disorder. He had just arrived from one of his many visits to Ukraine monitoring consequences of the war on the Ukrainian soldiers.
Complimentary DVD copies of the documentary were presented by Ms. Luhovy to participants of the missions, along with a photograph of each mission team member, taken by Ms. Luhovy at the Main Clinical Military Hospital.
The presentations were followed by a reception organized by BCU Foundation, providing an opportunity for celebration of the new release and for a much-welcomed reunion among the medical missions participants.
Dr. Mark McRae brought his newborn daughter to meet his colleagues for the first time. Nearing the end of the launch, team members began to discuss what more can be done to aid Ukraine’s people.
For information, to arrange for a screening, or to purchase a DVD copy of “Recovery Room” readers may visit www.recoveryroomthemovie.com and www.adrianaluhovy.com. The trailer for the film is available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1E3DR4aULmg.