Black Sunflowers

A documentary by James Marcus Haney

World premiere, Friday 11 September 2026TIFF Docs, Toronto International Film Festival

Official trailer

Black Sunflowers is about young ravers and street racers in Ukraine, and the soldiers who go back and forth between those worlds and the front line to fight Russia.

James Marcus Haney went to Ukraine in 2022 on assignment with the NGO War Child UK and found the underground rave and street racing scenes still running despite the war. He spent the next three years living between Kyiv and Los Angeles, filming. As another year of conflict stretches on, the film holds onto the ordinary moments that persist in the shadow of it.

Here you live in the middle of death and life.From the film

Billing

Directed byJames Marcus Haney

Produced byPedram Rezaee

Executive producersVlad Bolyelov, Adam Tudhope, Jay Bush, Cameron Bush, Sean Penn, Dianna Agron, Anna October

Co-producersYevhenii Zdorovylo, Samy Mosher, Eric Maldin, Volodymyr Yatsenko, Anna Yatsenko

Creative producerMikayla Jean Miller

Ukrainian productionLimelite

MusicFred again.., Brian Eno, Secret Life. Original score by Brad Oberhofer and Koloah

International salesCharades, with CAA Media Finance

Press

Charades and CAA Media Finance board Black Sunflowers ahead of TIFF Docs premiereVariety Sean Penn to executive produce, first look at Ukrainian youth coming of ageThe Hollywood Reporter TIFF 2026 documentary lineupIndieWire Festival listing and director's statementTIFF

Follow the film

blacksunflowersmovie.comOfficial site @blacksunflowersmovieInstagram @bsflowersmovieX Black Sunflowers (2026)IMDb