Russian Strike Hits Iconic Film Studio—Ukrainian Culture Struck at Its Core

On the night of July 31, a large-scale Russian missile and drone attack on Kyiv caused extensive damage across the city, including to the historic Oleksandr Dovzhenko National Film Studio.

According to the Ukrainian State Film Agency, the Dovzhenko studio—one of the oldest film production sites in the world—sustained significant destruction to its production facilities and hotel complex.

Nearly 90 windows were shattered by the blast wave. No casualties were reported.

The agency described the damage as the most extensive the studio has suffered since the beginning of the full-scale war. It noted that the site is not only used for film production but also houses valuable archival materials, technical equipment, and costumes.

The Dovzhenko Film Studio, established over a century ago, has long been considered a cultural landmark in Ukraine. It played a central role in the development of Ukrainian poetic cinema and remains a symbolic center of cultural identity.

Named after filmmaker Oleksandr Dovzhenko—one of the pioneers of world cinema—the studio became the birthplace of influential works that helped shape Ukrainian national consciousness through film.

Classics such as Dovzhenko’s Earth (1930), Vertov’s Enthusiasm: the Symphony of the Donbas (1931) and Paradzhanov’s Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors (1965)

Beyond its artistic legacy, the studio houses rare archival materials, historical costumes, and filmmaking equipment, much of which is irreplaceable. As both a working production site and a cultural repository, Dovzhenko Studio represents a living connection to Ukraine’s cinematic past and its ongoing creative resilience in the face of war.

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The State Film Agency emphasized that the strike reflects broader patterns in Russia’s military campaign, which has repeatedly targeted civilian infrastructure and cultural heritage sites throughout Ukraine.

Earlier on July 31, a large-scale Russian missile and drone strike on Kyiv killed at least eight people, including a six-year-old boy, and injured over 130 others. The attack damaged more than 27 locations across the capital, with the Sviatoshynskyi and Solomianskyi districts hit hardest. Emergency crews continue search and rescue operations amid the rubble of collapsed buildings.

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