Courageous Heart Productions

We’re going to be at the @marchedufilm at @festivaldecannes and @cannes.docs from May 16-20 to chat all things @cohepro and Solomea: Uncovering a Family Legacy. If you’re going to be at Cannes, let’s connect! Reach out to us - [email protected]

All I can hope is that I made them proud 🤍 See you at the @marchedufilm @cannes.docs

Last night something so incredibly special happened. For the first time ever, we shared Solomea: Uncovering a Family Legacy with a small group of trusted friends and family. What was an absolutely nerve wracking day of anxious thoughts on loop “What if they hate it?” “What if it’s they think it’s so amateur?” “What if I didn’t do right by her legacy, by my family legacy?” Ultimately - it came down to: “What if I failed?” My relationship to my fear of failure is one of the oldest I have. Ever present, trying to sneak in, making me think that it’s my internal voice, when actually it’s just background noise. And it’s taken a lifetime to discern that, even though it does catch me off guard every once in a while. But as we shared the film with our loved ones, I felt this overwhelming feeling. Of gratitude. Of accomplishment. What we have been struggling through for nearly seven years to make this film is nearly here. And the fact that what we set out to do to share her legacy with others, was finally being reached in its first, intimate, tangible way. After such a Herculean effort, it moved me to tears more than once to be there with everyone. I’m grateful to them. And even though I know this film will go on to have (hopefully) many screenings, I know I will carry this first exposure as a treasure. For all those family members who could not be there, we carried them with us in that room. All I can hope is that we did them proud. ♥️ As always, I’m grateful to the @shevchenkofoundation for allowing us to get here. And to my family, my parents, and my brother who are the only reason we were able to cross the finish line. So much more to come! I can’t WAIT to share it with you all!

@cohepro is officially going to be at @marchedufilm for this years @festivaldecannes See you on the Croisette! 😎

What an honour and a pleasure it has been to work on this film with these two for the past 6 years. They’ve watched it a countless amount of times, in so many variations. So many conversations and opinions shared, from gentle debate to heated Semotiuk discussions but above all, with pure heart. They’ve put as much of themselves into this film as I have (well, almost :) We are so, so close. Closer than we’ve ever been. Just a bit more and we’ll f i n a l l y be able to share it with you all. Stay tuned. And a major thank you to the staff of the @krushelnytskamuseum @lvivoperaofficial and the @shevchenkofoundation for their support along the way.

Thanks for showing us a great time @towebfest Congratulations to everyone who had a chance to show their work, attend a panel, and win an award. And major thanks and appreciation go to the tireless efforts of @katieuhlmann and the whole festival team for putting it all together. Bonus points for a dream come true moment where I got to present an award (for best Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Horror) and say: “And the nominees are…”

Allow me to reintroduce myself: Natalie Semotiuk is a Toronto-based filmmaker, producer, and marketing strategist specializing in independent film and digital distribution. A true champion of indie cinema, she is the Social Media Manager for HighballTV, the Festival and Artist Liaison for the Toronto Ukrainian Film Festival, a former producer of TIFF’s Rising Stars programme, and has a background in casting and talent management. She has worked on a number of award-winning short films both in front of and behind the camera. Her short film Festival was runner-up in the Canadian Film Festival’s Firecracker Department Comedy Igniter competition, and she is currently directing her debut feature documentary about legendary Ukrainian opera singer Solomea Krushelnytska. Her creative work extends across theatre, music, and cultural advocacy. Her play Heartbeats and Other Ways to Say I Love You premiered at the 2015 Toronto Fringe Festival, and she released her debut EP Follow the Wild One’s in 2018. In 2019, she served as a jury member for the Juno Awards for Best Comedy Album, and in 2022 she received the Award for Outstanding Volunteer Service to the Community from MP Yvan Baker for building the @dopomoha_toronto website, a digital resource for Ukrainian newcomers displaced by the war. She holds an undergraduate degree in History from the University of Southern California, a Master of Fine Arts in Theatre from York University, and a certificate in Digital Marketing Management from both the University of Toronto School of Continuing Studies and another from the New York Film Academy. She believes that when the right story speaks and the right audience answers, film has the power to change lives.

Did…that really just happen? We had the pleasure of attending the @canfilmfest @firecrackerdept Comedy Igniter Showcase. Out of 55 submissions from teams across Canada, 8 short films were chosen, including ours, ‘Festival’. As can be expected, we had such a great time filming it. What was completely unexpected is that our film WON 2nd place! I don’t think I’ve yet fully come to terms with that but wow am I grateful! We made this short film in four weeks. Four! It came from a real place (but it wasn’t a carbon copy) of @bulp1n and my time working at Festival. It’s wild to see something you wrote lift off the page and brought into frame by people who not only believe in the vision but had the talent to build it and work together to create their own version of it within such a tight turnaround. I can’t thank our team enough for showing up for us in the way that you did (snowstorm and all). Thank you to the festival organisers, the jury members, and the panelists for their generosity and consideration. Thank you to everyone who had a hand in helping us to create this film. And above all, thank you to our cast and crew. What a wonderful recognition of your talents and work - you deserve every bit of it. Shoutout to our ridiculously talented cast and crew—this win is yours. Filmmakers, hire them before they’re too famous to return your calls! Directed by @natalie.semotiuk & @yeimydazafilms Produced by @bulp1n Written by @natalie.semotiuk & @bulp1n Cinematography by @artemmykhailetskyi First AD @valloaiiza First Camera Assistant @olya.Glotka Sound Tim McGowan Starring @bulp1n @natalie.semotiuk @heatherisgallant Tammi Freeman @stephaniefolkins @anna_vagabova @valloaiiza Editor @alannahmurch Production Manager @anna_vagabova Sets & Prop Design @dobryariel Music Supervisor @tmades Gaffer @olya.Glotka Production Assistant @vinnyblossom Casting Director Tammi Freeman Craft & Catering @vinnyblossom Makeup Artist @gabbymillermakeup Makeup Artist @guyyyan24 Script Supervisor @karenreynox Script Supervisor @chi_chilla19 Behind-the-scenes photography @olya.Glotka Production company @cohepro

Today’s the day a film I co-wrote, co-directed, and co-starred in will be screening at the @canfilmfest x @firecrackerdept Comedy Igniter Showcase. My first film in a festival! It’s been a rollercoaster of an experience. Right before @bulp1n and I found out we got in, we literally spent an entire dinner lamenting that we hadn’t made it, that we would regroup and learn from our experiences to come back stronger next year. But, lol, a surprise was waiting in our inbox by the time we got home. I’m so proud of our team. I’m proud of what we made together. It’s easy to phone it in on a small project like this - but not this team. The extraordinary talents that came together in a LITERAL snow storm to make this short film showed up with their full selves. And as I told them - the real win was making something that resonated with people. I’m grateful to every single one of them for showing up for this project the way that they did. We made this one for festival survivors everywhere. We see you. We see how hard you work. The blood, the sweat, the breakdowns. And lord knows when times get really tough, we know how much a little laugh (and a well-timed chest bump) makes all the difference. And hopefully🤞this is just the beginning for ‘Festival’. See you at 4 PM! UPDATE: We won 2nd place!!

Wow am I beyond stoked to share that our comedy short Festival has been OFFICIALLY SELECTED for the 2025 Canadian Film Festival! Catch it on March 26 at 4 PM as part of the Comedy Igniter Showcase with @firecrackerdept & @canfilmfest . Huge congratulations to our incredible team—we’re so proud of this film and can’t wait to share it with you! #CanadianFilmFest #ComedyIgniter #FestivalShortFilm Festival Directed by @natalie.semotiuk & @yeimydazafilms Produced by @bulp1n Written by @natalie.semotiuk & @bulp1n Cinematography by @artemmykhailetskyi First AD @valloaiiza First Camera Assistant @olya.Glotka Sound Tim McGowan Starring @bulp1n @natalie.semotiuk @heatherisgallant Tammi Freeman @stephaniefolkins @anna_vagabova @valloaiiza Editor @alannahmurch Production Manager @anna_vagabova Sets & Prop Design @dobryariel Music Supervisor @tmades Gaffer @olya.Glotka Production Assistant @vinnyblossom Casting Director Tammi Freeman Craft & Catering @vinnyblossom Makeup Artist @gabbymillermakeup Makeup Artist @guyyyan24 Script Supervisor @karenreynox Script Supervisor @chi_chilla19 Behind-the-scenes photography @olya.Glotka Production company @cohepro

I could not have imagined in my wildest dreams of the astonishing team that came together to shoot a comedy short film for the @canfilmfest and @firecrackerdept comedy igniter challenge, right through the middle of one of the worst snowstorms Toronto has ever had. But we did come together and we had a weekend full of humour and creation. It felt special the whole way through. I want to thank every single person on this project because they all brought something special to set. I want to thank @pace.law for your incredible location (what a stunning office) and @highballtv for providing some of our set decorations (check out their films featured on the posters in our backgrounds). Thank you to our crew whose talent and incredible skills took the script and elevated into the full sensory world of our short film and kept us on track (and for most part 🙃) on time. Thank you to our cast and the way you were always up to stay curious and play. Thank you to Tom McGowan for both creating the sonic world of our short and for coping with my and @bulp1n extremely loud volume ☺️ Thank you to our cinematographer @artemmykhailetskyi for creating the visual world of our film and camera team extraordinaire @olya.glotka for your incredible skills in giving life to this film. To my Co-Director @yeimydazafilms - damn woman, what a force you are. I’m inspired by what an incredible director you are and even more so how strong a woman in your power you are. Thank you for being my partner in leading this team and project because you made it look gooooood. And to my producer and co-star @bulp1n . This would not exist if it weren’t for you. It is truly bonkers that we brought this from an idea to script and to screen. With truly the best team who brought their whole selves to this. We are the luckiest and I literally could never have done this without your energy, spirit, talent and you better believe that big ol’ heart of yours. Thank you to any and everyone who had a hand in this project. I’d list you all but Instagram says my caption is too long. Thanks to you all, we’ve made something special. 💖 Time for post-production! 📸 by @olya.glotka and me!

Українська громада! Нам потрібна ваша допомога! Porcelain War — це більше, ніж фільм. Це заклик до дії, культурний рубіж і потенційний голос України на світовій арені. Цей потужний документальний фільм претендує на номінацію на Оскар, що може донести історію України до глобальної аудиторії саме тоді, коли це найбільше потрібно. Наступні два тижні будуть вирішальними. Перегляд Porcelain War у перші вихідні показів може значно посилити його вплив. Цей фільм обов’язковий до перегляду для митців, оповідачів і всіх, хто вірить у трансформаційну силу правди через мистецтво у часи війни. Але перш за все, це прекрасний фільм, який дарує надію. Будь ласка, подивіться його та підтримайте: 📍 Дати прем’єрних показів • Ванкувер: 29 листопада* • Торонто: 6 грудня* • Оттава: 6 грудня *Перевірте місцеві розклади для участі в обговореннях після показу. Не зволікайте—квитки вже у продажу на PorcelainWar.com #PorcelainWar #ДокументальнеКіно #КампаніяНаОскар #Україна — Ukrainian community! We need your help! Porcelain War is more than a film—it’s a call to action, a cultural milestone, and a potential voice for Ukraine on the world stage. This powerful documentary is campaigning for an Oscar nomination, with the potential to bring Ukraine’s story to global audiences when it’s needed most. The next two weeks are going to be critical. Seeing Porcelain War on its opening weekend could make all the difference in amplifying its impact. This is required viewing for artists, storytellers, and anyone who believes in the transformative power of truth through art in times of war. But above all, it’s a beautiful film that instills hope. Please see and support it: 📍 Opening Weekend Dates • Vancouver: November 29* • Toronto: December 6* • Ottawa: December 6 *Check your local listings for post-film panel discussions Don’t wait—tickets are on sale now at PorcelainWar.com #PorcelainWar #Documentary #OscarCampaign #Ukraine