Loznitsa's documentary drama 'Above the Fire' premieres in Cannes 2026 competition with Zahaikevych soundtrack. Premiere 18 May 2026.
Cannes Film Festival 2026 (79th edition, 14-25 May) hosts the documentary drama 'Above the Fire' by director Sergei Loznitsa in 'Un Certain Regard' competition. Film premiere — 18 May 2026 at Salle Debussy (1068 spectators). Original soundtrack to the film was written by Alla Zahaikevych — this is her second-ever Loznitsa collaboration (previous — short film 'Cutting Pinpoints' 2018). Film plot — documentary-fiction drama about the Mariupol evacuation in March-May 2022. The film consists of 4 'hours': real archive chronicle + studio interviews + reenactment with actors + meditative sound/picture passages. Zahaikevych's soundtrack (total duration 92 minutes, full film score 187 min) combines electroacoustic processing with traditional instruments (bandura, violin, piano). Soundtrack content also integrates audio documents from real 2022 events — recordings of audio shellings (provided by surviving Mariupol defenders), telephone communications, ambient sounds. This is ethically delicate work that required 8 months of coordination with families of real events participants. A separate soundtrack release album 'Above the Fire: Original Soundtrack' releases 25 May 2026 on ECM Records label (parallel to the film's financial release). The film is expected to receive a 'Best Original Score' nomination at European Film Awards 2027.
