МEDIATRAUMA AND COMMEMORATION: WAR ANIMATION AS A FORM OF COLLECTIVE MEMORY IN UKRAINE

Abstract

The article explores contemporary Ukrainian animation dedicated to the theme of war as a medium for representing traumatic experience and shaping collective memory. Drawing on the methodology of memory studies, trauma studies, and animation studies, it analyzes a number of animated works created after the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Particular attention is paid to the films I Died in Irpin, War Through the Eyes of Animals, The War That Changed Rondo, as well as volunteer projects Souls and Life and Death, which function as examples of visual commemoration of civilian victims of war. Animation is considered not only as an artistic form but also as a specific memory technology capable of visualizing the subjective experience of trauma, transforming individual testimonies into collective narratives, and creating new forms of digital commemoration. Through the combination of documentary evidence, symbolic imagery, and experimental visual solutions, animated works become instruments of cultural reflection that allow society to comprehend the experience of war in a multidimensional format. The study shows that animation performs the function of “soft” memory, capable of conveying emotional and psychological aspects of traumatic events, fostering empathy, and supporting processes of collective mourning. It becomes an important means of communication between generations, as it creates accessible yet profound images of war that can be integrated into educational, museum, and media practices. Thus, Ukrainian wartime animation emerges as a unique cultural phenomenon that combines artistic expression with social mission. It not only documents and interprets traumatic experience but also contributes to the formation of historical memory, opening new horizons for the study of the role of visual media in processes of commemoration and cultural identification of Ukraine.