20 Days in Mariupol, nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature Film, presents a visceral, first-person view of the early days of Russia’s invasion of the city of Mariupol, Ukraine. An Associated Press team of Ukrainian journalists is trapped in the besieged city, where they struggle to continue their work documenting atrocities of the Russian invasion. As the only international reporters who remain in the city, they capture what later become defining images of the war: dying children, mass graves, the bombing of a maternity hospital, and more.

This is the first feature film from Chernov, who spent nearly a decade covering international conflicts, including the Russia-Ukraine war, for The Associated Press. The film draws on Chernov’s daily news dispatches and personal footage of his own country at war. It offers a vivid, harrowing account of civilians caught in the siege, as well as a window into what it’s like to report from a conflict zone, and the impact of such journalism around the globe.

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Photos courtesy 20 Days in Mariupol.