The 22-minute-long "Kyiv Cake" was, created, in a sense, through an unusual form of collaboration.

The film was made completely online by director and screenwriter Lyskov, who lives in Dnipro, composer Anton Baibakov and several other Ukrainians, but it was completed entirely in Estonia—the film's main animator is Tarmo Vaarmets and its sound designer is Horret Kuus.

Upon awarding the KISFF National Competition Grand Prix to "Kyiv Cake," the jury described the movie as a masterfully crafted short animation.

"The jury would like to highlight the mature, yet playful and surrealistic film style, which masterfully weaves together themes including heritage, fatherhood, transition, family and separation with a generational shift in mentality before and after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The director's cinematic language uses regional stereotypes and irreverence to tell a story of everyday grandeur, representing a fresh and bold voice in contemporary animation."

Lyskov said the award means a lot to him, particularly as "Kyiv Cake" premiered at a festival in Ukraine. Due to the war, he is unable to travel and take part in film festivals elsewhere in Europe, so this expression of support is extremely important.

"As a filmmaker, the audience's reaction during the screening is extremely important to me, especially that of the Ukrainian audience, because my film uses only Ukrainian narratives, and the plot of the film reflects the reality in Ukraine," said Lyskov. The screening of "Kyiv Cake" at the festival was directly affected by a Russian air strike.

"Kyiv cake has been extremely popular since the Soviet era. The invasion by the Moscow occupiers began with the Russian army closing all restaurants in Kyiv to celebrate their quick and expected victory in the conquest of Ukraine. Eating Kyiv is a concise way of passing on this story," said Olga Pärn, who connected Lyskov with Estonian animation studio Eesti Joonisfilm. "However, they couldn't eat the Kyiv cake because they got beaten up."

The movie's producer Kalev Tamm said the story behind the film is quite unique and began in 2021, when Lyskova conducted a long interview with Estonian animationist and cartoon director Priit Pärn at the Tallinn Animation Festival.

"During our conversations, we learned that Lyskov had just finished a short animation called 'Deep Love,' which had been extremely successful at animation festivals around the world. Lyskov also talked about an idea for his next project, which would have dealt with life in Ukraine during the transition from the old world to the new," said Tamm.

Just before the full-scale war began, Lyskov contacted Priit and Olga Pärn again with an idea to organize an online lecture by former at an animation festival in Ukraine.

"During our conversation, it became clear that he had begun work on his new animated film, and on February 24, 2022, the day before the invasion began, he sent both applications, for the lecture and the film, to the Ukrainian Ministry of Culture. After February 24, it became clear that the idea of making animated films would have to be put on hold for a long time. Unfortunately, due to the war, it was not possible to obtain Ukrainian funding for animated films," Tamm explained.

According to the producer, the Estonian Joonisfilm team got to know the project under the working title "Linnupiim" ("City Milk") and suggested that Joonisfilm might produce the film.

"On the one hand, we were inspired by the opportunity to contribute to Ukrainian culture along with the whole of Estonia, and on the other hand, it would have been like paying off a certain historical debt. Namely, if Estonian animation had not found support from Finland, Iceland and the U.K. in the early 1990s, we might not have been able to overcome the so-called black hole in the transition from one system to another, and Estonian animation would not be what it is today. Perhaps it would not even exist at all," Tamm said.

Joonisfilm has nevertheless tried to help Ukraine where it can. Families of war refugees can watch the full-length Ukrainian-language animated film "Lotte from Gadgetville" free of charge in both Estonia and the U.K., for instance. Over the past year, Priit Pärn has given a series of personal lectures online to Lyskov, who teaches young animators at Dnipro Art College, on how to teach animation.

According to Tamm, the film's strong social message will certainly resonate with Estonian viewers.

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