The Norwegian filmmaker Anders Hammer is known for short films that capture global conflicts on the ground as they unfold. These include Do Not Split (2020), which follows the pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong, and The Takeover (2023), which chronicles the lives of Afghan women in the wake of the Taliban’s return to power.
The third film in this trilogy, When It Started to Burn, documents Russia’s invasion of Ukraine over the course of four years, beginning in March 2022, as a combination of deep uncertainty and extraordinary resolve was setting in across the country. In particular, the film follows the life of a Kyiv native named Kseniia, who makes the difficult decision to send her children abroad as she stays in the country and runs a ‘humanitarian headquarters’ distributing donations to those in need. Through his portrait of the invasion from the perspective of Ukrainian civilians, Hammer explores how their lives are defined by horrific violence, enduring terror and ceaseless solidarity.