Ukraine's Dovzhenko Studio Vows to Rebuild After Russian Airstrike Destroys 100,000 Costumes

A Russian airstrike on June 15 destroyed a vast archive of theatrical and film costumes at the National Film Studio Dovzhenko, studio staff reported to Julija Žukova of the Current Time programme. The loss has been estimated at roughly 100,000 individual costumes, many of which had been used in dozens of historical films and represented decades of work by designers, artisans and filmmakers.

Employees of the studio told reporters that the blaze consumed storerooms where costumes and period garments were kept, depriving filmmakers and theatres of irreplaceable materials. While details about the broader physical damage to the studio complex were not provided in the initial reporting, studio personnel emphasized the symbolic and practical impact of the destruction: these costumes were not only tools of production, but also tangible elements of Ukraine’s cultural memory and cinematic heritage.

The incident underscores the broader toll that the conflict is taking on civilian cultural institutions. Attacks that damage or destroy cultural property can have long-term effects on a society’s ability to remember and express its history. Staff at Dovzhenko Studio told RFE/RL that, despite the scale of the loss, they were resolved to rebuild the collection and to continue their work preserving and promoting Ukrainian film culture.

The reporting of the attack by Current Time, and its relay by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, places the destruction in the context of ongoing strikes by Russian forces inside Ukraine. While the studio itself and its staff have framed the episode as a blow to artistic resources and a loss for filmmakers and historians, the wider implications reach into questions of the protection of cultural heritage in armed conflict and the responsibilities of parties to avoid harm to civilian infrastructure.

International law recognizes the special importance of cultural property and the need to protect it in times of war. Although the reporting does not detail any legal proceedings or formal accusations stemming from this specific strike, preservation experts and rights advocates generally note that the destruction of cultural infrastructure raises potential concerns under conventions and norms designed to shield civilian cultural assets during hostilities.

For the immediate future, studio workers say their priorities are documenting what was lost, salvaging what remnants remain, and mobilizing resources to restore collections where possible. Rebuilding a costume archive of the scale destroyed at Dovzhenko will be a protracted and costly endeavor, requiring new acquisitions, recreation of period garments and renewed support from the broader film and cultural communities.

The destruction at Dovzhenko reflects a less-visible dimension of wartime damage: beyond lives and homes, armed conflict can erase archives, artworks and the material culture of storytelling. Studio staff interviewed by Julija Žukova expressed determination that this material destruction will not silence Ukrainian filmmaking, pledging to rebuild and to continue safeguarding the country’s cinematic legacy despite the challenges posed by the war.