- July 23, 2026
- 8:04 pm
- Israel
In August 2026, the feature-length documentary “Kuzma: Scarily Cheerful” is released internationally, dedicated to Andriy Kuzmenko — a Ukrainian singer, composer, writer, TV presenter, and founder of the band “Skryabin”.
The film’s screenings are announced in more than 30 countries worldwide. Israel is also included in the international program, but the exact cities, cinemas, and screening dates have not yet been named. The Israeli partner of the project is the company Created in Ukraine, which is involved in showcasing Ukrainian cinema in Israel.
For those who listened to Kuzma Skryabin’s songs in their youth, the film may be a meeting with the artist whose music remained part of their personal history. For viewers who previously knew almost nothing about him, it is an opportunity to discover one of Ukraine’s most recognizable and unusual artists of recent decades.
Who is Kuzma Skryabin
Kuzma Skryabin is the stage name of Andriy Kuzmenko. He was born on August 17, 1968, and became known as the leader of the band “Skryabin,” which emerged in the late 1980s.
The group started with experimental electronic music, synth-pop, and underground sounds, later becoming one of Ukraine’s most popular musical projects. Skryabin’s songs were played on radio, television, concerts, and festivals, and Kuzma himself gradually became not only a musician but also a notable public figure.
He was known as a person with sharp humor, strong self-irony, and the ability to talk about complex things without pathos. In his songs and interviews, Kuzma reflected on love, loneliness, growing up, war, politics, human weaknesses, and everyday life.
For many listeners, he was not just a performer of popular songs. Andriy Kuzmenko was perceived as a person who spoke with his own voice and did not try to fit into a convenient image.
The musician died on February 2, 2015 in a car accident. He was 46 years old. After his death, his songs, interviews, and recordings continued to live on, and interest in Kuzma’s personality only increased over time.
A film in which Kuzma tells his own story
The documentary drama “Kuzma: Scarily Cheerful” is built not only on the memories of the musician’s friends, relatives, and colleagues.
The main narrator of his own story effectively becomes Andriy Kuzmenko himself. Viewers will see his interviews, home videos, concert recordings, television appearances, travels, interactions with loved ones, and fragments of ordinary life.
The team at KNIFE! Films found and processed over 400 hours of video and audio materials, as well as more than 22,000 photographs. The authors collected materials from family archives, private collections, television archives, and people who knew Kuzma or worked with him.
This approach allows not just another retelling of the musician’s biography, but to see the living Andriy Kuzmenko again — during work, travels, rehearsals, conversations, and performances.
A special place in the film is occupied by recordings from the 1990s — the period of the formation of the band “Skryabin.” The wider audience is much more familiar with the later Kuzma: a popular singer, TV presenter, and author of sharp public statements. However, the early history of the group, its musical experiments, and first steps to fame remain little known to many viewers.
The creators of the film do not try to present Kuzma exclusively as an impeccable hero or turn the film into an official monument. At the center of the story should be a living person — cheerful, sharp, vulnerable, contradictory, and sincere.
The Ukrainian premiere of the film is scheduled for August 13, 2026, four days before Andriy Kuzmenko’s birthday. In 2026, he would have turned 58 years old.
International screenings and Israel
Organizers have announced that the film “Kuzma: Scarily Cheerful” will be shown in more than 30 countries worldwide. However, the published list actually includes 37 countries.
The list includes the USA, Canada, the UK, Germany, Spain, Italy, Poland, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic, Sweden, Hungary, Austria, Ireland, Iceland, Moldova, Albania, Norway, Croatia, Portugal, Cyprus, Belgium, Luxembourg, Slovakia, Denmark, Israel, Turkey, Estonia, Australia, New Zealand, France, Romania, Latvia, Lithuania, Finland, Kenya, South Korea, and Japan.
Such a scale of international distribution shows that the film is aimed not only at a Ukrainian audience. The film may be of interest to viewers who want to better understand Ukrainian culture of the late 20th and early 21st centuries through the story of one of its most recognizable representatives.
For the Israeli audience, this is especially important, as there are many people in Israel who remember Skryabin’s songs from their youth. At the same time, the film can interest those who were not previously familiar with Andriy Kuzmenko’s work.
NAnews — Israel News | Nikk.Agency is monitoring the release of information about Israeli screenings. So far, it is only confirmed that Israel is included in the film’s international program.
Who organizes the screenings in Israel
The Israeli partner of the project is named as the company Created in Ukraine.
This is an Israeli production and distribution company that brings Ukrainian films to theaters, cinematheques, and cultural centers in the country.
Previously, the company organized screenings in Israel of films such as “Mavka,” “Pamfir,” “Dovbush,” “20 Days in Mariupol,” “I, ‘Pobeda’ and Berlin,” and other projects. It also held Ukrainian Film Days in the cinematheques of Jerusalem and Holon and collaborated with the Ukrainian Cultural Center at the Embassy of Ukraine in Israel.
Organizers have not yet announced:
- in which cities in Israel the film will be shown;
- which cinemas and cultural venues will participate;
- when ticket sales will begin;
- how much tickets will cost;
- in which language subtitles will be available;
- whether there will be special premiere screenings;
- whether representatives of the film crew will come to Israel.
It is possible that the film will appear in several Israeli cities at once, as Created in Ukraine collaborates with cinema networks, cinematheques, and cultural venues in the country.
However, until the official announcement, it is premature to name Tel Aviv, Haifa, Jerusalem, Ashdod, or other cities.
Why this film could be an event
“Kuzma: Scarily Cheerful” is not just a biography of a famous musician. Through the fate of Andriy Kuzmenko, the film tells about the changes that occurred in Ukrainian music, culture, and society over several decades.
Viewers will be able to see the journey from the first musical experiments and underground recordings to immense popularity, television, concerts, and the status of an artist whose words continued to be discussed even years after his death.
For those who listened to Kuzma Skryabin’s songs in their youth, the film will be a meeting with a person whose music remained part of their personal history.
For all those who care, it is an opportunity to see the living Andriy Kuzmenko again, learn about his journey, and discover one of the brightest artists of recent decades.
Exact dates, cities, and screening schedules for the film “Kuzma: Scarily Cheerful” in Israel will be published after the official announcement by the organizers.
When and where
The Israeli partner of the project is named as the company Created in Ukraine – so stay tuned for updates.
