You know what was absolutely incredible in Mariupol? Nobody was afraid of death, even though they thought they were. Death was already here and everybody wanted to die meaningfully. People helped each other even at the risk of their lives. They smoked outside and talked even when bombs were falling. Money no longer existed because life had become too short to think about it. Everyone was happy with what they had, becoming a better version of themselves; there was no past, no future, no judgement, no ambiguity! It was paradise in hell. The fragile wings of a butterfly touching. The smell of death's true value. That was life there. "This film would not exist if it were not for Manto's love for the people and for the inhabitants of Mariupol, if it were not for his faith in the power of cinema, if it were not for Hana's clandestine removal of the footage, and if it were not for the fact that Russia had not started the war in Ukraine. This film is about life. It is also a memorial to Mantas Kvedaravičius, who was killed in the making of the film, and to all the people who died in the war." (Dovilė Grigaliūnaitė)