By Renée Santos
Los Angeles, CA (The Hollywood Times) 10/9/25 – I had the pleasure of interviewing Larysa and Dmytro, the sister and brother-in-law of filmmaker Ganna, who both served as executive producers of Mama’s Voice. Their honest and deeply personal conversation revealed the raw humanity behind this remarkable documentary. As they shared their experiences, I was struck by the cultural and emotional collectivity at the heart of their story—a reflection of what it means to love, to endure, and to rebuild in the wake of unimaginable loss.
Hearing that Ganna remains a refugee in Poland, unable to return home due to ongoing war and travel restrictions, gave the film a haunting immediacy. Mama’s Voice is not a distant retelling of past trauma—it is a story still being lived. In that realization, the documentary’s emotional resonance deepened for me as both a journalist and a woman. Listening to Larysa and Dmytro speak about the strength of their family and the pain of separation, I found myself not just conducting an interview but bearing witness to a living testament of resilience.
Ganna Yarovenko’s Mama’s Voice is a profoundly moving documentary that captures the endurance, courage, and unwavering bonds of family in the face of war. Making its world premiere at the 21st LA Femme International Film Festival, this film embodies the festival’s mission to elevate strong female voices in cinema, offering audiences both emotional depth and perspective through the lens of women’s experiences.
Set in the early days of the Russo-Ukrainian war, the film chronicles Yarovenko’s harrowing journey as a mother forced to flee her home with her children and mother to seek safety in Poland. Amid displacement and fear, she encounters Kaja, an artist, singer, and mother of five, whose family welcomes them with open arms. What unfolds is a tender exploration of maternal solidarity—a bond that helps Yarovenko confront trauma, loss, and the devastating realities of war.
Filmed on location in Mława, Poland, and Zabuchchia, Ukraine, Mama’s Voice captures both the external chaos of a world in conflict and the quiet internal battle of a mother reclaiming her identity. Yarovenko’s lens is intimate and fearless, her narration deeply personal, framing the film not as a historical document but as a diary of endurance, hope, and faith in humanity. Her background as a journalist and cinematographer shines through in every frame, revealing not only her technical artistry but her relentless pursuit of truth.
The collaboration with her sister Larysa Iarovenko and brother-in-law Dmytro Konovalov adds a rare authenticity—this is storytelling born from lived experience, shaped by family unity, and anchored in the will to survive. Together, they have crafted a film that is as current as it is emotional, a reminder that the headlines we read are lived realities for millions of families like theirs.
Screening at LA Femme International Film Festival on Saturday, October 18, 2025, at 2 PM at Regal Cinemas LA Live, Mama’s Voice stands as a vital addition to the festival’s celebration of female perspectives. It is both a cinematic and humanitarian triumph—a film that doesn’t just recount tragedy but transforms it into a universal call for empathy.
As Larysa reflected during our interview, “When you lose your home, you realize that home is not a place—it’s the people who refuse to let you fall apart.” That sentiment echoes through every frame of Mama’s Voice, a film that reminds us, even in war, love and connection remain our greatest acts of resistance.
