What happens to animals when war enters their world? ANIMALS IN WAR brings together seven short fictional stories inspired by real experiences of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. A rabbit, a cow, a cat and other creatures become unexpected companions to people facing danger, displacement and loss. Their presence reveals moments of tenderness, fear and resilience that might otherwise go unnoticed.
Moving between villages, cities and the natural world, the anthology approaches the war from different angles. Some stories follow the fragile bonds that help people endure; others explore the strange, sometimes absurd ways ordinary life continues under threat. Together, they show that war reaches far beyond the battlefield, affecting animals and the environments they inhabit as well as the humans around them.
Created by seven filmmakers, including Myroslav Slaboshpytskyi and Andrii Lidahovskyi, and featuring Sean Penn in one of its episodes, ANIMALS IN WAR combines intimate drama, flashes of humour and compassion. It is a portrait of survival in which caring for another living being can become an act of hope.