A Ukrainian film following the stories of famous NHL players of Ukrainian descent debuted at Ford Hall in Rogers Place for its Canadian premiere on Mar.10.
A crowd of over 300 gathered to watch “UKE: The Untold Story of Hockey Legends,” hosted by the Kule Folklore Centre at the University of Alberta. Hockey Night In Canada’s Kelly Hrudey, a former NHL goalie born in Edmonton with Ukrainian heritage, was the event’s master of ceremonies.
UKE follows the stories of 50 NHL Stanley Cup champions of Ukrainian descent and their impact on hockey. The film features numerous interviews with legends such as Wayne Gretzky, Johnny Bucyk and “Canada’s hockey dad” Walter Gretzky.
Directed by Emmy award-winning Ukrainian filmmaker Volodymyr Mula, the film was originally released in 2020. The Canadian premiere was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic and then delayed again due to the war in Ukraine.
Now, five years after its release, it was time to show it to a Canadian audience. And Mula didn’t want the Canadian premiere of his movie to be just anywhere; he wanted it to debut on the big screen.
“During the COVID-19 pandemic, it was impossible to come abroad to show my documentary,” the Director told the Nugget. “After COVID, the war started in Ukraine…I didn’t get the chance to show it in Canada, but I had [shown it] in the United States.”
“I don’t want to show my documentary on small screens…this documentary is ready for something big because I spent a lot of time to create this documentary.”
Mula wanted to make a documentary about Ukraine, but with a focus on sport to help spread information on Ukrainian culture. “Our idea was to create a documentary about winners because a lot of people with Ukrainian roots played in the NHL, but not much won.”
“My documentary is not about sports, it’s about Ukrainian legacy.”
The premiere comes just a few weeks after the three-year anniversary of the Russia-Ukraine war and offered Mula a unique opportunity to use his creation to educate people on Ukrainian history.
“I’m trying to use my documentary right now to support Ukraine,” said Mula. “It’s a good time to organize events like this…to teach people in different countries about the situation in Ukraine.”
“And right now, I am using my documentary for cultural diplomacy.”
Hrudey echoed Mula’s hopes that the film can uplift the Ukrainian community in Edmonton and abroad amid challenging times.
“I think [the film] is going to make everybody proud…sport, I really feel, brings us together, and it’s something we can share. It’s something we all have in common, and when you do it with this sort of depth, it’s even better.”
Mula was unsure about future premieres across the country but is waiting for “a really good proposal” to continue showing the film.
With one screening in Canada now finished, Kule Folklore Centre Director Larisa Sembaliuk Cheladyn hopes that this event will inspire others to follow in their footsteps and that more venues will step up to the plate to show the movie to Canadian audiences.
“The idea came to us over a year ago. It’s taken this long for us to put this in place, and it feels really great to have this happening,” Sembaliuk Cheladyn said. She hopes the premiere can remind Canadians of their ability to overcome difficult times.
“We can live through adversity and challenges, and hockey is one of the best ways to explain that,” she said. “Mike Myers said it the best: elbows up. You get through it.”
