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Y O U N G F IL M M A K E R B R IN G S O L D U K R A IN IA N R IT U A L S T O M O D E R N L IF E HALYNA KUZYSZYN Andrea Odezynska Photos courtesy Andrea Odezynska UNWLA Eva Stashkiv fund scholarship recipient Ivana Kupala is probably one of the most mystical Ukrainian folk celebrations, where the theme of love is enveloped in a variety of customs and songs. Its pur pose was also to mark the end of summer and the beginning of the harvest season. Andrea Odezynska, a student at the American Film Institute (AFI) of Los Angeles, California has made the fantasy-filled rituals of Ivana Kupala the theme of her Master’s of Fine Arts thesis — a film called “Dora.” The idea for the project was sparked by a melange of differ ent circumstances. When searching for a topic, Ms. Ode zynska received an article on the rituals of Ivana Kupala, published in “Our Life” magazine (she is a member of UNWLA Branch 111 in Los Angeles). She was fasci nated by what she read, and says “the rituals were fun, inventive and courageous.” Her interest in Ivana Kupala was compounded by the fact that Ms. Odezynska actu ally experienced Ivana Kupala celebrations during sum mer Plast (Ukrainian youth organization) camps. ’’Those experiences were wonderful,” she says, and she was intrigued by the "simple but strong faith (of these ritu als) that seems to be missing in contemporary life.” Ms. Odezynska has put a lot of time (almost two years) into the making of “Dora”, a love story with a twist of old Ukrainian ritual. It was written by Ms. Ode zynska and centers around the life of Dora, a young woman whose Lithuanian-American boyfriend (Gintau- tas) abandoned her. Gintautas, (played by John Glover — who appeared in such films as “Gremlins II” “White Nights”, and many TV appearances as well as theater performances), is an L. A. performance artist with aspi rations of marrying a girl from Lithuania. In the mean time, he uses Dora whenever he likes. Dora is played by Joan Giammarco, who has appeared in such films as “ I’ll Do Anything”, "Batman Returns”, "Singles”, and others. As a result of the breakup, Dora is confused and unsure of herself. Because of her despair, she decides to sample some of her grandfather’s home-made "slyvo- vitsja” and enters into a night of quirky Ivana Kupala rituals. They are not exactly the same ones her grand mother (played by Barbara Kraft) spoke of, but for Dora, they serve as amusing distractions from her breakup with Gintautas. The film (30 minutes long) has many touching scenes between Dora and her old-world grandmother, who gives her advice based on what she’s experienced in her own life in Ukraine. The screenplay was co-written by Ms. Odezynska and AFI friend David Lewison. It is in English, with orig ’’HALUE ЖИТТЯ”, БЕРЕЗЕНЬ 1994 15
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