Venice Film Festival artistic director Alberto Barbera took to social media in August 2026 to forcefully defend the selection of Russian filmmaker Ilya Khrzhanovsky’s immersive cinematic project “DAU” for the upcoming festival edition, following a severe public backlash and joint condemnation from Ukrainian government ministries.
The Backlash and Official Condemnation from Ukraine
The controversy erupted two days prior to Barbera’s public response when a joint statement was released by the Ukraine Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Culture, and the Ukrainian Embassy in Italy. The official communiqué noted that granting one of the world’s premier cultural stages to a work connected to the Russian government and its influence networks projects an alarming message while Russia persists in its war of aggression against Ukraine, steadily demolishing towns, cultural treasures, and national identity.
The Ukrainian statement explicitly flagged key figures connected to the production. It noted that main actor Teodor Currentzis had his Russian citizenship conferred on him by Vladimir Putin and that his musical career was funded by Russian banks. Furthermore, the statement pointed out that “DAU” received financial backing from Russian businessman Sergei Adoniev, who faced sanctions by the United States in 2023 and by Ukraine in 2022.
Barbera’s Defense and the Political Status of the Director
Faced with mounting pressure, Venice artistic director Alberto Barbera hit back via an Instagram post on Wednesday. While recognizing the brutal and severe conflict in Ukraine, Barbera argued that constructing a series of claims built on false assumptions and distorted realities to target both the Biennale and a competing film was an unacceptable and petty maneuver.
Barbera defended the project by emphasizing its artistic stance and the director’s actual standing with the current Russian government. As Barbera stated on social media, “DAU” is not a Russian film and is not pro-Putin propaganda, but rather a work that denounces totalitarian regimes and their intrusion into citizens’ lives to restrict their freedom. He characterized Ilya Khrzhanovsky as a Russian dissident labeled a terrorist and state enemy by the regime, pointing out that the filmmaker has opposed the Russian invasion of Ukraine right from the start.
According to Barbera, the critics launched an inexplicable smear campaign against a film that its accusers have evidently not even seen yet.
Production Timeline and Historical Context of DAU
The production history of “DAU” stretches back long before the 2022 invasion. Principal filming took place over a three-year period from 2008 to 2011. The project also received partial early development funding from the Ukrainian State Film Agency in 2012.
Shooting occurred on a massive closed set in Kharkiv, Ukraine, where approximately 400 non-professional actors were isolated from the outside world during production. This monumental undertaking amassed hundreds of hours of raw material. Out of this massive archive, previous iterations have already debuted on the international circuit, including “DAU. Degeneration” in 2019 and “DAU. Natasha,” which earned a Silver Bear at the Berlin International Film Festival.
The upcoming screening at Venice represents the third of what’s projected to be a 14-film sequence derived from the project. Originally conceived as a biopic about Nobel Prize-winning Soviet scientist Lev Landau—nicknamed Dau—the enterprise evolved into a massive immersive installation project comparable to an immersive real-life simulation.
Ongoing Controversies Surrounding the Methodology
The methods used to create the project have consistently courted controversy. Prior to the Berlin screening of “DAU. Natasha,” questions were raised regarding unprofessional and unsafe conditions on set, particularly concerning the treatment of actresses and the deployment of unsimulated violence.
These allegations have been strongly denied by Khrzhanovsky and members of his cast, including lead actress Natalia Berezhnaya. When asked by Variety last year whether he had any regrets about his filmmaking methods, the director replied that he felt the method was absolutely unique and perfect, adding that he believes he did everything right methodologically.
As World of Reel noted in its coverage of the festival lineup, the dispute over “DAU” compounds a turbulent season for Venice programmers, who previously faced online criticism regarding the representation of female directors in the competition lineup. Barbera maintained his stance on those programming choices, stating that he remains focused on artistic quality rather than imposed quotas.
“DAU” is scheduled to compete for the Golden Lion when the Venice Film Festival opens next month on the Lido.
