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High Five

Directed by Julia Ivanova
Canada, 2012 (documentary, 96 minutes, colour, English / Russian)
Also known as "High Five: A Suburban Adoption Saga", "High Five: An Adoption Saga"

Film Description:
"Award-winning director Julia Ivanova immerses herself in the lives of Cathy and Martin Ward, a suburban Canadian couple who travel to Ukraine to adopt five siblings, the youngest six and the eldest nearly 17. The adoption process begins with Alyona and Snezhana coming to Canada while the other siblings remain at the orphanage, joining their sisters a year later. Over the course of four years, complications of international adoption, cultural collisions and sibling rivalries arise, as Yuliya (the eldest sibling), who assumed a motherly role in the orphanage, struggles to find her place in the family. Ivanova's sensitivity to the complexity of her subjects makes her keenly aware of when to step back and let the camera linger, and when to intervene to expose the larger truths that might otherwise remain hidden. The result is an intimate and emotional look at a modern 21st-century family."
-- Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival (source)

Film Credits (partial):
Produced by: Boris Ivanov, Murray Battle, Charlotte Dewolff, Ole Gjerstad, Joelie Sanguya
Cinematography: Julia Ivanova
Film Editing: Julia Ivanova
Music: Boris Sichon
Production Company: Interfilm Productions
(sources)

Notes about High Five

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