While the war in Ukraine has rightly dominated global newsfeeds for the past month, it’s easy to forget that it actually started back in 2014. When we talk about the victims of such conflicts, thoughts naturally turn to the military loses and civilian deaths. However, this is only the tip of the iceberg. The longer they rumble on the greater the impact they have on the local communities and infrastructure. Setting back regions by decades.
While the war raged inexorably in the Donbas, the ripples washed out into the surrounding areas. With a lot of the men fighting on the front-line and suffering injury or trauma, much of the burden fell on the women. Jobs dried up and with them food and money. Many turned to cheap alcohol or drugs to numb the pain. When families break down, children are taken into a halfway home, given 9 months before a more permanent decision is made. A House Made of Splinters tells their story.
A House Made of Splinters is a big-hearted documentary which follows the staff and children at the institution, all hoping for a brighter future. And ‘hope’ is the key word in Simon Lereng Wilmont’s documentary. In all too many cases the outcome is depressingly inevitable. However, there’s the possibility that a better life and future are just round the corner. A House Made of Splinters is a hopeful and emotive picture of young lives on hold.
A House Made of Splinters screens at CPH:DOX.
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