Ukraine’s “2000 Meters to Andriivka” and “I Died in Irpin” Among 2026 Oscars Shortlisted Films

Mstyslav Chernov’s documentary 2000 Meters to Andriivka and Anastasia Falileyeva’s animated short I Died in Irpin have been shortlisted for the 2026 Academy Awards.

The shortlists for 12 categories were released on December 16 on the official Academy Awards website.

2000 Meters to Andriivka made it onto the shortlist for the “Best Documentary Feature” category. While Ukraine also submitted the film in the “Best International Feature Film” category, it did not make the cut there.

Documentary follows a Ukrainian platoon assigned to cross a heavily guarded stretch of forest to free a strategically important village from Russian control. The film, seen through the eyes of a journalist accompanying the soldiers, captures the soldiers' journey as they venture deeper into their war-torn homeland, ultimately leading them to a grim realization: this war could be endless.

Chernov’s earlier work, 20 Days in Mariupol, won the 2024 Oscar for Best Documentary Feature. Both 20 Days in Mariupol and 2000 Meters to Andriivka were produced in collaboration between the Associated Press and Frontline, one of the longest-running investigative documentary series in the US, known for addressing significant global issues through in-depth storytelling.

I Died in Irpin, an animated short, also made it to the shortlist for “Best Animated Short Film.” The 11-minute film blends animation, created from charcoal drawings, with personal footage from the Anastasia Falileyeva’s own archives. It narrates the early days of the Russian invasion from the director’s perspective.

In November the animated short I Died in Irpin has recieved the “Best of the Best” award in the short film category at the Emile Awards.

Additionally, the film Rock, Paper, Scissors by the British director Franz Böhm, which won the BAFTA Award, is also on the list, featuring performances by Ukrainian actors Oleksandr Rudynskyi, Serhii Kalantai, Oleksandr Yatsenko, and Yurii Radiyonov.

Inspired by true events, the film follows a father and son operating a makeshift hospital on the frontlines. When a platoon of soldiers arrives at their door, they are forced to make a heart-wrenching decision to protect both their patients and themselves.

Earlier, Mstyslav Chernov's Ukrainian documentary 2000 Meters to Andriivka was recognized as one of the top five documentary films of 2025 by the US National Society of Film Critics.

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