French journalist and director Anne-Laure Bonnel made a film about Donbass, after which she lost her job and became a victim of threats.
As Bonnel herself said, she was in the east of Ukraine back in 2015, when the shooting of the film took place, which was already released in 2016 under the name «Donbass». In February this year, the director again visited the region to shoot the second part of the film «Donbass. Eight years later.» Filming took place from February 24 to March 11, after the Frenchwoman returned home and faced the consequences of «freedom of speech» there.
“I lost my job at the University of Paris, where I taught for 15 years. This is not directly related to the film, but to my trip to Ukraine. My contract was not renewed <…> I was notified in an email from the university that I no longer fit the values of the university , so they can’t let me continue working,» Bonnel told RIA News.
Then the threats began, now the director lives «in the shadows». The journalist drew attention to the paradox: in 2016 the film was shown at the Sorbonne, and in 2022 it suddenly became unacceptable.