From frontline to Oscars red carpet: Ukrainian producer swaps body armour for black tie
Do you like movies? I do, but sometimes real life is even crazier than the movies.
Azad Safarov is a Ukrainian producer working with Sky News journalists in Ukraine. He is also the assistant director and line producer for the Oscar-nominated documentary film ‘A House Made Of Splinters’. Here he writes about going from the frontline to the red carpet.
In just a short space of time I have gone from being on the frontline in Ukraine, to preparing to walk the red carpet at the Oscars ceremony in Los Angeles. And it’s a strange feeling.
I was born into a poor family in Azerbaijan, and because of the war in Nagorny Karabakh and financial problems, my family decided to move to Ukraine. We settled in Donetsk and became Ukrainian citizens.
I was eight years old at the time, and even then, all I wanted to do was make movies. My cousin and I filmed short sketches and dreamt of selling them to Hollywood.
Azad Safarov with Sky News’s Stuart Ramsay in Ukraine
My mother advised me to become a journalist, because she believed it was the most peaceful profession in Ukraine. But no sooner had I graduated from university and moved to Kyiv in 2014, the protests on the Maidan began – and consequently the war.
As a television journalist, I’ve worked everywhere in Ukraine. Under fire on the frontline, and undercover in the Russian-occupied territory of Ukraine.
My point is, I am much more comfortable in a 12-kilogram bulletproof vest and a helmet than a black-tie tuxedo.
I applied for a special 21-day permit to leave the country when I was told that I was going to the ceremony.
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It was granted, and I decided I wanted to wear a sweatshirt or a t-shirt, anything with an inscription or the state coat of arms of Ukraine. But they explained to me that the organisers would simply not let me inside, there is a strict dress code.
‘Deprived of the right to be happy’
I’ve been dreaming of this moment all my life.
I used to watch Oscar ceremonies and imagine winning; I’d imagine how proud my parents, friends and family would be if I ever won the award.
But now the moment has come, and I have a nomination, I can’t say it too loudly or be too happy about it.
“Aren’t you jumping for joy?! This is the Oscars! That’s super cool!” my friends say to me all the time.
I am happy, of course, but the joy is mixed with sadness, because as long as I am here in Los Angeles, on the frontline in Ukraine every day, every hour really, soldiers are dying, protecting our country from our neighbour.
I cannot post funny pictures on social media, because at this very time, millions of Ukrainian civilians are suffering from Russia’s aggression and missiles.
It feels like Russia has deprived us of the right to be happy, to be successful, the right to enjoy life, the right to simply laugh out loud.
A House Made of Splinters is about the consequences of the war
The consequences of war
Our Oscar-nominated documentary film, A House Made of Splinters, is also about the consequences of the war.
The director is the talented Danish filmmaker Simon Lereng Wilmont who I started working with back in 2015, and this is our second film from Ukraine. The first one, The Distant Barking of Dogs, made the Oscar shortlist in 2019.
A House Made of Splinters is about children growing up in a temporary shelter next to the war. It is sad, but at the same time, it is a film about hope. It’s about how Ukrainian children fight for their own happiness, childhood, and the right to live in a family and feel love, even while the war rages on.
It’s an important story to tell, and we have an important mission that goes beyond.
I co-founded the NGO, the Voices of Children Charitable Foundation, with the documentary’s consultant and human rights activist Olena Rozvadovska, and after the Russian invasion, we helped thousands of children, and their families evacuate from the frontline. But the needs are only growing.
Azad also says the movie is a film about hope
Azad Safarov made it to Los Angeles
The entire production team understands that we are competing with big companies and big names at the Oscars, with big budgets for advertising their nominees.
But to win would be incredible, in these dark times we want to give at least one small piece of joy to the country, which has been fighting for freedom and the happiness of being free for so long.
And with this in mind, I will go to the ceremony and hope for the best. I will take two things with me: my father’s broken watch – he died when I was 13 years old – and a brooch in the colours of the Ukrainian flag.
And no, I will not disable the air raid alert app on my phone if there is a notification about it from Ukraine, because to me, the Oscars is one more platform to remind the world about the war.
You can watch the Academy Awards on Sunday 12 March from 11pm exclusively on Sky News and Sky Showcase. And for everything you need to know ahead of the ceremony, don’t miss our special Backstage podcast, out now, plus look out for our special episode on the winners from Monday morning.
They’re getting through 70kg of rice a day and the wholesaler has run out of noodles. Yes, Sumo returns to London on Wednesday.
It’s just the second time a Grand Tournament has been held outside of Japan – and this is a sport that has records going back more than 1,500 years.
It’s 34 years since the Royal Albert Hall hosted the only previous such event on foreign soil – and the appetite for tickets meant all five days sold out immediately.
Much of the focus is on the two grand champions or yokozuna, the 74th and 75th men to attain the rank.
They’re the Mongolian Hoshoryu Tomokatsu, plus Japan’s Onosato Daiki – who this year became the quickest wrestler to achieve the rank in the modern era.
“I’m happy that Sumo is back after so many years,” Onosato said. “I hope I can show the UK fans how fantastic Sumo is.”
“Being a yokozuna has a lot of responsibility,” Hoshoryu told Sky Sports. “We have to show everyone an example of what a yokozuna is – and that’s very difficult.
“My uncle was a yokozuna – and I’m happy to follow in his footsteps. But I came here to London as a yokozuna which he didn’t, so I’m even happier.”
The two are already great rivals.
Onosato Daiki became the quickest ever to achieve yokozuna rank. Pic: AP
At the recent Aki Basho – the most prestigious tournament on the sumo calendar – the pair finished with identical records after 15 days of bouts.
It all came down to a final play-off between the two yokozuna – the first time that had happened in 16 years. It was Onosato who came out on top on that occasion.
Hoshoryu says he is a big fan of basketball and football. He follows Chelsea, although his favourite players are going back a bit: “Didier Drogba and Petr Cech. He’s the ‘keeper. I like this guy!”
Early starts and a hearty stew: The life of a rikishi
The wrestlers – or rikishi – have a rigorous training regime.
They live in communal blocks called stables and practice starts early. Perhaps surprisingly, everyone skips breakfast. After training and practice – and for the younger rikishi, chores – the wrestlers all eat together.
The staple of their diet is chankonabe, a hearty stew packed with meat and vegetables. The feeding of the 40 rikishi who have come over for the five-day tournament is a challenge in itself.
Donagh Collins, the CEO of co-organisers Askonas Holt, said: “We are going through 70 kilos of rice a day. Somebody told me that the wholesaler for the noodles has run out of noodles. We’re really pushing the system here.”
The ring – or dohyo – is just 4.55m in diameter and quite small when two giant wrestlers leap at each other.
The aim of the fights is to either get your opponent onto the floor – or, more spectacularly, shove or hurl them out of the dohyo, so spectators in the ringside seats may be getting extremely up-close to the wrestlers.
The last time the tournament was in Britain, the massive Konishiki, known as the Dump Truck, took centre stage.
The giant Hawaiian was the heaviest-ever rikishi coming in at 287kg – or 45 stone. That’s a lot of wrestler to dodge if he comes falling out of the ring towards you.
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The Royal Albert Hall may be firstly a concert venue, but it has hosted the likes of John McEnroe, Lennox Lewis and even Muhammad Ali.
And for the next five days, the cream of the world of sumo will be thrilling the crowds – provided a new noodle supplier is found.
What is a yokozuna?
Yokozuna is the highest rank in sumo, with its name meaning “horizontal rope” and refers to the rope worn around a competitor’s waist as they enter the ring.
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