Kherson: Human Safari — Zarina Zabrisky’s haunting documentary exposes Russian war crimes in Ukraine
“While the world is asleep, we are dying here.”
I admit, our President’s crazy is mighty distracting. And I admit, Ukraine has been shoved into that corner of my brain marked, “Distant horrors.” Now comes a film that puts Ukraine back in our face. A film which is heartbreakingly artistic, original, moving and too important to ignore.
This is a review — and a kick in the pants to our forgetting —by our special Eastern European correspondent, Anna Solcaniova King.
For Putin’s “useful idiots” who think it’s OK to deliberately incinerate civilians because somewhere back in time NATO considered admitting Ukraine, watch this now. If your heart is on the side of the hurt, you should also watch, to bear witness. Then send it to the heartless who weep for immigrants and Syria and Gaza but watch coldly as Putin vaporizes citizens he calls fellow Russians. — Greg Palast
KHERSON: HUMAN SAFARI — UKRAINE, OUR AMNESIA AND A DANCE AMONG THE RUINS
by Anna Solcaniova King for the Palast Investigative Fund | July 11, 2025
Kherson: Human Safari is both a frontline documentary and a work of resistance art — a powerful and poetic film created inside the war-torn city of Kherson, located by the Black Sea on the Dnieper River. The city that does not fear.
Written and directed by Zarina Zabrisky, an award-winning American author and journalist based in Ukraine, the film exposes one of the most horrifying aspects of Russia’s invasion: systematic drone attacks on civilians — what witnesses describe as a “human safari.” These targeted strikes — captured in intercepted footage — form the heart of a war crime still unfolding in plain sight and escalating.
But Kherson: Human Safari is not just evidence of atrocity. It is also a portrait of resilience, memory, and artistic defiance. The people who made it are the same people living through invasion, occupation, resistance, and war.
As Zabrisky explained to me via email, ”The structure may feel unexpected. The dancer’s role is a mystery at first — she is ethereal, the soul of Kherson, moving through destruction and survival. Later, she speaks. She is real. She is from Kherson and her journey comes alive through her movement.”
This self-reflexive storytelling is woven into every part of the film. The composer who scored the soundtrack was a partisan fighter during the Russian occupation. The director of photography lost his home and entire archive to Russian forces. The editor cut scenes to the sound of incoming Iranian Shahid drones.
“This is not just a film — it is testimony in motion,” says Zabrisky. “Kherson itself, as the film shows, remains artistically alive despite the horror. Theater premieres happen in bomb shelters. Embroidery classes take place in basements. Songs are sung over air raid sirens. The dance sequences were filmed under shelling. Some of the buildings seen in the film no longer exist — destroyed in airstrikes after filming. These moments now serve as a requiem. The dance becomes a funerary rite.”
The film includes intimate interviews with Kherson citizens — people proud of their culture, their local food, and their homeland. Many have chosen to stay despite having relatives who fled to other countries to save their lives. It’s a conscious choice to remain, to protect whatever little is left, and to bear witness to their city’s struggle and spirit.
“This is a film about Kherson, told by Khersonians. They don’t just live in the city — they become it.”
These are not just stories of war — they are voices of defiance, pain, and hope from those who refuse to be erased.
Describing the dehumanizing logic behind the drone strikes on civilians, a woman who lost her husband says, "They see old or young on the street, civilians — but they don’t consider us human.” Her daily routine continues amid the violence, but her words lay bare the emotional toll.
And yet, the spirit of Kherson endures.
“We will have Victory,” declares a man distributing humanitarian aid. He has not seen his own family in three years. His simple affirmation carries the weight of sacrifice, purpose, and unwavering belief in Ukraine’s future.
But the reality on the ground remains brutal — and the voices carry a clear cry for help.
Family members recounting the forcible abductions of children during the occupation of Kherson tell us, “They drove around here in armored personnel carriers and walked around here. They could take a child by force and take him away ‘for health improvement’ — and then you cannot get the child back.”
A local priest reflects on the scale of death and the absence of accountability saying, ”A lot of people died. I think thousands. And no one counted them.” He speaks calmly, but with deep sorrow about the unrecorded human cost of the war.
A local woman, voice trembling, delivers a searing indictment of global inaction. “Drones are hunting people these days. While the world is asleep, we are dying here.”
The UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine (HRMMU) has documented and analyzed these attacks, concluding that targeting by drone operators has violated fundamental principles of International Humanitarian Law (IHL), including distinction and precaution. Majority of incidents may amount to intentionally directing attacks against civilians — a war crime.
Even in the face of such horror, Kherson: Human Safari shows that resistance is not only visible or armed — it is also underground and deeply alive. It is filled with art, dance, poetry, and theater. Here, art is not just a tool for expression — it is a way to endure, to remember, and to begin healing.
The world must not look away. These war crimes demand justice. This film is not only a witness — it is a call to act. The UN Human Rights Office is calling for robust measures to protect civilians in frontline areas. Deliberate targeting of civilians by short-range drones must cease. Violations of International Humanitarian Law should be thoroughly investigated, and those responsible held to account.
To learn more, and to watch the full movie, visit: khersonhumansafari.com
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