Time to get up!
Say hello to the gentlemen.
Hello!
Go to Mummy, I'll get your uniform ready. 00:00:48.172 00:00:52.093 [ VO ]There are only women in the Ryzhkov family, the grand-daughter, daughter, mother, and grand-mother.
[ Masha ]When I was 5 or 6,
I just couldn't sleep at all.
Because of the war I only slept every other night.
Sometimes I didn't sleep at all,
when they fired at night from an APC.
It's like a big tank,
it won't let you sleep.
The grey zone is a demarcation area,
a corridor, between the armies.
The armies are on either side, neither is allowed into the village.
We just live here.
The children go to school, we work.
We do housework and grow vegetables.
[ Masha ]My name's Masha.
My mum calls me 'Mania', my granny, 'Maria',
so everyone has their own name for me.
I go to bed around 8 or 9 pm before the shelling starts.
I wouldn't be able to go to sleep, otherwise,
specially as I get up early to go school.
at 7 or 8 am.
[ Svetlana ]They call us separatists, what's a separatist?
Someone who wants a quiet, peaceful life?
Who wants a calm life for their kids?
That's what a separatist is?
Take a look.
- Three bows? - Only two. Why three?
- This one was hanging down. - Well…
[ Svetlana ]At night we leave the windows ajar, even in winter.
If there's an explosion, the blast won't damage the glass too badly.
[ Aleksey ]A gunner must see where he firing, and who he's shooting at.
So why do shells sometimes land in people's homes and gardens?
Better ask the spotter,
I have no idea.
They give coordinates,
we tap them in and the shot's fired.
Everybody's at work.
Ok, the cups…
The village has been torn in half.
Some families are split with relatives on the Ukraine side and this side.
They can't see each other...
because of checkpoints.
- Granny, will we go by car? - No, by bus.
Okay...
Won't your ears get cold?
- If they do, I'll go like this. - Ok. Let's run for bus.
Let granny get her shoes… 00:04:27.316 00:04:32.756 [ VO ]Maria's school is in nearby Nikitovka. Sometimes, it has "visitors" too - that's what they call it when the village 00:04:32.756 00:04:38.447 is shelled by artillery and mortars. But as it’s the only school available, it’s a risk she has to take every day.
[ Masha ]It's a very good village.
I have friends everywhere: right, left and all round.
They all live in Nikitovka,
they get so badly shelled, I can't bear it.
Have you gone through Nikitovka?
They used to have a market there,
now its roof is split in half!
Good morning, first grade!
You know the pick up time, right?
[ Svetlana ]We can't go in because of the terrorist threat. It's very strict.
The teacher takes them in and they study.
Morning is starting!
It's a good day!
The sun is smiling!
It's a good day!
People are waking up!
It's a good day!
It's a good day for everyone.
It's a good day!
A good day,
a good...
[ Aleksey ]I was captured on April 3, 2016.
We were leaving for a shift in Kherson.
I fell behind the convoy.
We lost our way and came out near a checkpoint.
Our vehicle was stopped.
We didn't get to the checkpoint, they shot at our tyres.
How many were you?
- Two. - Two of us.
What were you serving as?
I drove a ZIL-131,
with a mortar platoon.
- You? - I worked on mortar withdrawal.
[ Viktoria ]That's from the shockwave.
The thing is that the school was hit twice in less than a month.
One direct hit and one in front of the main facade.
We know who it was...
...because of the direction.
We're no fools, we see how
the OSCE mission helps them with targeting,
and we know who's there,
Maiorsk is Ukrainian territory.
Liokha's coming! A moment in history!
It's Lyosha, not Liokha!
Everyone here is my friend. 00:07:42.512 00:07:50.632 [ VO ]Every drawing in these picture books is a reflection of war. Even first-graders know all about combat vehicles and tanks.
No white spots allowed!
Colour it in!
This is a DPR flag.
This is a tank.
This is an APC, where bombs are landing.
I'm very happy to see you.
Today we'll discuss a proverb:
'You live and you learn'.
Who knows what that means?
It means you have to study well if you want to live well.
Right! It means, we keep learning new,
exciting things as long as we live.
You're on camera!
[ Viktoria ]The school was hit on the night of July 10th.
There was a huge hole in the wall.
This window was blown out, frame and all.
It won't open because of the damage.
There's no window frame.
You can see how strong the blast was.
It fell in completely after the first blast, as you can see.
The building is 78 years old.
We keep on working.
Everybody wonders how we go on,
and if we discuss the war with the kids. We don't!
On the contrary, we try to distract the Nikitovo kids from the war,
as they're living it day and night.
The action is mostly at night.
Mornings, they go to school and a different life.
Locals believe the Ukrainian army issues illegal orders.
Why do Ukrainian soldiers carry out illegal orders?
An order is an order.
How can you not follow an order?
- You have to obey orders. - What happens if you don't?
A court martial.
[ Viktoria ]When we first heard the sound we couldn't believe our ears.
Planes, really?!
It was...
it's always the same, about 2:30 to 3:30. I even joked:
'It sounds as if war's broken out!'.
Then there was a huge blast,
and the jam jars on my balcony tumbled down,
it shook so much.
'What was that? What's going on?!'
That was the feeling the first time...
then, every morning. 00:11:05.667 00:11:10.787 [ VO ]While Masha’s at school, Svetlana checks their how much food supplies is in the basement. 00:11:10.787 00:11:15.087 With no jobs in the village, they only their have a vegetable garden can be relied upon to sustain them the family through the year.
[ Svetlana ]It's no bomb shelter,
just a basement to store food.
Come in, guys. Take a look where we hide.
We had armchairs here.
Everything was shaking.
I said a close hit will throw all the jars into my face.
We covered them in blankets when it was scary outside.
We're not hiding so we uncovered them, as it's pickling time.
We hide up in one of the rooms. Come what may. If we're hit, we all die.
How do we live with the memories
of what they did here?
They say, 'Donbass will return to Ukraine!'.
I don't get it. How could we re-join Ukraine after this?
After all the murder,
the shelling, the destruction?
A shell landed in our back yard!
We've no windows left,
we picked up bits of our gate 50 m away!
Every single night.
The shelling starts at 3.30...
It was four days ago, Saturday…
Last Saturday or Sunday, I can't remember.
I sat up at night and prayed for everyone.
I said, 'Lord, keep everyone alive, whether good or bad.
We'll figure out later who lives…'
I just can't...
I definitely know the feeling,
wanting to hide under a bed, or even somewhere safer.
I don't know if there's a God up there or not.
But you pray when you're under fire.
[ Valery ]In life...
there are times
when everyone...
thinks of God and prays.
We prayed, too.
And you said the same prayers
as the people we've been filming there.
Line up by height.
Tallest on this side, shorter ones on that. 00:13:45.289 00:13:54.610 [ VO ]Physical education is the most dangerous class because it’s in the open air. But it’s also the favorite, because there’s no homework after this lesson. The pupils all join in, and enjoy it.
Like that, so I don’t move you. Do it yourselves.
Got it? 00:14:07.170 00:14:13.371 [ VO ]After the last lesson of the day, Masha’s mother takes her home. They return to Zaytsevo, the grey zone.
- Mashenka! - Mother!
Where's your coat?
Here, in my schoolbag.
Oh, the correspondents are here already.
- Mum, are we going by car? - No, by bus.
No, by car, it's faster.
[ Svelana ]It was at night.
Such an explosion!
I can’t put it into words.
It jarred my teeth and rolled me out of bed.
So we thought it was Tochka-U. The next day they said a second
had come down on the factory
in Donetsk.
It made a massive crater!
A Tochka-U, Mum.
- It was a Tochka-U. - Film it!
[ Aleksey ]Maybe they wanted to do what they did in Crimea.
To do it fast - separate and that’s it.
But it didn’t go to plan.
Instead they got war.
They didn’t agree.
- You must be tired, my darling! - My legs are wobbly.
Sweetie, you’re so cute! Let’s change quickly and eat.
And wash your hands!
[ Svetlana ]She has her dog, Bulka.
When the mortar attacks were fierce,
Masha was afraid, so we got her a dog.
As soon as the mortar attacks begin, she takes her dog...
Even at night, she says: 'Where's my Bulka?'
We let it in, as a yard dog it lives outside.
They play together and the child is calmer.
Hello!
When a drone flies, what do you do?
I just sit.
The thing is, it flies so high, the bullets don't get you very fast.
I have time to hide.
What scares you most, a drone or...
the mines?
- Mines. - Why?
Because you walk, walk, walk... suspecting nothing.
Then boom! And you’re gone.
All dreams are mine!
All mine!
And what's the best?
The end...
The end of this war.
We just wanted to live our lives.
We'd barely begun to, after the last war.
And here you go!
Why don’t people just live? Just work and live! The fields are full of wheat.
No, they hate each other.
[ Svetlana ]This is anthracite.
The smaller ones are here in the bucket.
And the bigger one will burn.
More here.
Voltage is low.
So we stock up with water. 00:18:47.754 00:18:55.554 [ VO ]In daylight hours they need to stock up with water and lay the fire, Masha can even ride her bike on the empty street, before the firing starts again
[ Svetlana ]Masha has to survive in such conditions.
I never thought my kids and grandkids would suffer like this.
We are family, there are many of us. We won’t ever leave this place.
Somehow we’ll survive through the winter.
We grew up here, we live here and we have our roots here.
They say, 'We kill their heroes!' But they shouldn’t have come uninvited.
They say: 'We're reclaiming our territory'. You own it when you’re buried in it.
This land is for people who have to live here,
and will keep living here.
Cool!
My hands are numb!
All our own produce. 00:19:54.028 00:20:04.387 [ VO ]While dinner is underway, Svetlana manages to preserve several jars of tomatoes. They’re preparing for the long winter to come and humanitarian aid deliveries are few and far between .
There!
They sit here till morning,
then they go in the cellar.
For gas we fill the pressure vessel.
- From the gas dispenser? - Yes, that's right.
We fill the can up there.
We're afraid bullets will hit the can and make it explode.
Like mortar attacks, did you hear?
The house shook, an explosion nearby.
Maybe someone stepped on a trip wire.
[ Svetlana ]We turned to the world community for help.
We asked them to stop the attacks. We asked everyone.
I don’t know !
Nobody needs us!
Though, there is the UN...
maybe they can help.
What does victory mean to a Ukrainian soldier?
What's the fight for?
[ Aleksey ]Before we came here, they told us Russian troops were here…
Then we fought for Ukraine’s unity.
When we were captured we realised there were no Russian soldiers here.
And we changed our point of view. 00:21:41.214 00:21:48.373 [ VO ]Before dark, the Ryzhkovs have time to harvest a little from their garden, it’s right in the line of fire from mortars and snipers.
- Everything's frozen. - Yes, I told you so.
There was a touch of frost.
You pick tomatoes and I'll gather grass.
Masha, don’t fool around.
Twice they attacked. Very fiercely.
They shot and it was there in the corn.
Bullets fly...
and bullets don't care where they go!
A hedgehog ate the tomatoes.
My wife is waiting for me at home, and my job.
I worked on the railway.
If I get home the job will still be there.
- What do you do? - I'm an engineer.
- What will you do when you get back? - I'll work.
I'll work at home.
The army won't get us!
We’ve been there, we know…
They shoot in the evening.
We do this to protect ourselves, hoping,
it might save us.
You see, what’s going on? We fill the holes with pillows. 00:23:31.997 00:23:37.397 [ VO ]Zaytsevo is completely deserted in the evening as people hide in their homes to wait for darkness. In the grey zone, 00:23:37.397 00:23:44.738 the Internet is the only connection with the outside world. Masha and her mother forget the real world by diving into a virtual one.
You lost!
I know.
Yours doesn’t sleep either. New glasses?
No. They’re the old ones, I just changed the colour.
Report on the district.
OK, let's see what's happening.
On Mriya it’s OK. On Glubockaya it’s calm. Thank God!
In Solnechny it’s quiet and cold!
On Lukul it’s ok... Enakievo is also ok. 'We're baking pies.' Great!
I wish everyone a peaceful evening and good night.
It’s not just us resting today.
Everybody’s ok. Poor old Zaitsevo!
Do you want coconut,
or some milk?
[ Boy ]Soldier, don’t shoot, here's my house. Don't aim your rockets here, I’m just a child.
Why do you shoot at me?
You destroyed my kindergarten.
But I’m still alive.
Nanny hid us in the cellar
and your shells didn’t get us.
The house is destroyed and all the toys are left there:
my favourite bicycle I rode without a care.
What did you do, soldier?
All the houses are ruined.
I’m afraid to go to bed
because the shrapnel can reach there.
My grandparents could die. My mother too.
How could I live without them?
They and I are family.
I pray at night, soldier.
I pray for the shells to pass by.
I pray for the war to end.
I pray for spring to fill my soul.
[ Tatyana ]In front of him stood a brown boy.
He looked up into Father Wolf's face, and laughed.
'Man!' he snapped.
'A man cub!'
'Really? Is that a man cub?' said Mother Wolf. 'I've never seen one. Bring it here.'
Sleep peacefully, little frog. O thou Mowgli,
for Mowgli the Frog I will call thee.
[ Valery ]Masha, I want...
you to see...
the world.
I wish the sun to shine on your head,
and for clear skies above,
I want you to smile happily every morning.
I don't want you to see this war.
[ Aleksey ]Masha, first I want to apologise,
to apologise to you.
I want peaceful skies for you.
I wish you good things...
health and happiness.
The war will soon end, it must end!