Family Portrait in Black and White

Family Portrait In Black and White

Bravo to the Royal Cinema. They dare to show excellent films that you can’t find anywhere else. The theatre is used for editing during the week so films are only shown in the evening or a Sunday afternoon. I love going for the Sunday 4:30 performance. The theatre seats are very comfortable and the place has all been re-furbished.
This noteworthy document introduced me to an amazing woman, Olga Nenya, who is raising 17 foster children mostly of mixed race. She lives in Sumy Ukraine. The extended family and mixed races is not well received by the other residents in the community. There are many challenges for Olga and the children. She is a single parent living in poor conditions. There isn’t even an indoor toilet or hot water.
Inspectors come quite often to assess the situation. They comment on the messy house.
The foster children are mainly black and this is a real challenge for anyone living in the Ukraine. The racism and outright hatred for blacks is astounding. The children actually face danger from beatings from the skin heads who openly speak their hatred.
The children call her Mama. She couldn’t stand the thought of children being raised as orphans and sees her lifestyle as a better opportunity for neglected children. She rescued these children and gives them much love. There is a lot of hugging of each child.
The children have chores to do in looking after the goats and tending the garden. The children help to prepare the food. Some of the children complain that it is like living under a dictator. They complained that they felt a lack of freedom and choice.
The children were always well dressed. It wasn’t adequately explained how she pays for the food and clothing.
She tries to meet the needs of the children as individuals. One young handsome boy was determined to be a musician. He goes on to higher education studying music.
One young lad was having difficulty reading. The authorities sent him to a boarding school for challenged children. It was heart breaking. He later tells Mama that he caused trouble and they sent him to a psychiatric hospital. The punishments were severe and upsetting.
She realized that she couldn’t hold onto the children forever. Many were sent for summer holidays to live with Italian families. Some w ere adopted by these families.
One young boy was sent to an Italian residence. The man was single and lived with other male family members. He was so caring of the young boy but the authorities would not
allow him to adopt the boy.
I learned a lot about the life in a small Ukrainian town. This woman was amazing to take on such a challenge. The film tells the story but does not take sides. You listen to both sides through the children’s comments and from Olga.
You are left to decide if the woman was a saint or misguided.
Julia Ivanova is a Russian- Canadian film maker. She also did the editing and the photography. The film was selected for Sundance Film Festival and was a winner of the best Canadian feature at Hot Docs.
It was a fascinating documentary. It has currently moved to the Carlton Cinema.