CPH:DOX Opening Film: Mariinka
The long-awaited documentary ‘MARIINKA’ directed by acclaimed Belgian filmmaker Pieter-Jan De Pue, has been selected as the opening film of the 23rd edition of CPH:DOX taking place March 11–22, 2026 in Copenhagen. The film will celebrate its world premiere at the CPH:DOX 2026 opening gala in the concert hall of the Royal Danish Academy of Music on March 10 at 19:00, in the presence of the director and the film crew, including two of the main protagonists in the film.
Shot on 16mm and nine years in the making, ‘MARIINKA’ is the second feature documentary by Pieter-Jan de Pue after the highly praised ‘The Land of the Enlightened’ (2016). The film will be screened in the festival’s main competition, DOX:AWARD, honouring films that combine exceptional storytelling, innovative filmmaking, and cultural as well as social relevance.
‘MARIINKA’ begins long before the world watched the full-scale invasion. In eastern Ukraine, the film traces several young Ukrainians whose lives have been forever shaped by more than ten years of war and conflict in the Donbas region.
Amidst the war a promising boxing talent turns military paramedic, a girl is smuggling unexpected goods across the frontline to survive, and as in a Greek tragedy, two brothers now fight on opposite sides of the front line – against each other – while their youngest brother lives in safety far from the war with a foster family in the United States. Through letters, video calls and silent meetings, a story unfolds about belonging, national loyalty and the fault lines where political conflicts can trump even the bonds of blood.
“’MARIINKA’ is a film that insists on our attention at a time when attention itself has become a scarce resource. Pieter-Jan de Pue has spent nearly a decade staying with this story – not chasing the news cycle, but listening to lives shaped by a war that began long before it filled our headlines and continues as the world’s gaze threatens to drift elsewhere. The result is a remarkable cinematic achievement that refuses both distance and simplification, presenting the Russian invasion of Ukraine as lived reality, carried in bodies, relationships and impossible choices. Shaped through European co-production – and years of engagement with CPH:DOX’s industry platforms – the film reminds us why documentary cinema matters: not to offer easy answers, but to confront us with urgency, nuance and the complex human realities behind events often reduced to headlines,” says Niklas Engstrøm, Artistic Director of CPH:DOX.
“I am very happy and honored that the years-long journey of this film has ultimately led to a world premiere as the opening film and competition entry at the renowned CPH:DOX festival, which has always supported us during the development and rough cut phase of the project,” says Pieter-Jan De Pue, director of ‘MARIINKA’.
‘MARIINKA’ is directed by Pieter-Jan De Pue and produced by Bart Van Langendonck and Pieter-Jan De Pue (Savage Film), in co-production with Christian Beetz (Beetz Brothers Film Production), Femke Wolting and Bruno Felix (Submarine), Vincent Metzinger, Emilie Blézat (Dark Riviera), Naoko Films, Shelter Prod, and ZDF in collaboration with ARTE, with the participation of RTBF Documentary Unit, VRT, VPRO, and SVT.
The film is supported by the Flanders Audiovisual Fund (VAF), the Belgian Federal Tax Shelter, the Netherlands Film Fund, the Centre du Cinéma et de l’Audiovisuel de la Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles, the Creative Europe MEDIA Programme, the King Baudouin Foundation, and Eurimages, in collaboration with the Belgian Embassy in Ukraine.
