Synopsis

Logline:

"History knows no other crime of such a nature and magnitude."

Synopsis:

In 1932-33, Ukraine, the breadbasket of the Soviet Union and Europe, had bountiful crops of grain, yet its people were dying of starvation. In order to crush the will of the independent-minded Ukrainian peasants and secure collectivization of all Ukrainian lands, Joseph Stalin ordered an army of ruthless, well-fed Communist Party activists to confiscate all harvested grain and seize all the foodstuffs in the villages. As a result of this genocidal decree, by the end of 1933 nearly 25 percent of the Ukrainian population – up to 10 million people, including three million children – had perished.

In the face of terror, Ukrainians had little possibility of escaping their horrific fate to create another life elsewhere. Travel was banned for Ukrainians keeping them confined in a prison of starvation within their own villages. To this day, the Russian government still denies this genocide ever occurred, perpetuating “the biggest lie, best kept secret.”

Director's Statement:

Let me begin by stating that I am not of Ukrainian descent.

In November 2006, Producer Marta Tomkiw invited me to the 2006 Holodomor Memorial Service in Los Angeles. Although I had fancied myself as a history buff, seeing every World War I and II movie I could, and studying countless hours of history channels, I had never before heard of Holodomor or any genocide or famine in the Ukraine. Much to my surprise, I later found out that nobody I knew had ever heard of it either.

I was very deeply touched by the Memorial Service. Upon Luba Keske's encouragement of planting this seed (Mrs. Keske is a member of the Los Angeles Holodomor committee), as well as Marta Tomkiw's convincing tactics, I decided that this story needed to be told after being silenced for over seven decades.

Marta and I researched and found no other full-length feature film documentary on this topic. I felt that the time had come for all the souls who needlessly died to be given a collective voice to tell their story. I believed it was my duty to lift the veil of silence that had been shrouding the Ukrainian nation for too long.

The atrocities that Ukrainian people faced should never happen again.

Bobby Leigh, Director