KINDNESS AMBASSADORS - Full Documentary FILM, directed by Elena Beuca Rogers

When the war in Ukraine started, two and half years ago, I was returning to my home country of Romania to visit my family. My Husband, Dave and I were deeply affected by this news as we were recently at the boarder of Ukraine and Romania as it’s only a few hours drive away.

As Christians we are called to “love our neighbour”. With a camera and a few supplies, we headed to the Ukrainian border in the early morning to meet with friends, volunteers already there. Something interesting happened - the filmmaker in me awoken. Although I don’t have experience in documentary filmmaking, I felt a crucial need to record our journey and the people we met along the way and to share with the world the UKRAINIAN VOICES. So that’s what the rest of our 2022 year looked like. And, for the next year and a half, I focused on the post-production aspect of the film - This is how "KINDNESS AMBASSADORS” was born.

Once we finished the film, the next phase was DISTRIBUTION and the big question loomed "How do we reach people, World Wide, but even the people of Russia – because they need to hear their neigbours voices probably more than anyone”. Although, I'm a filmmaker, I don’t have the experience in distribution, and it’s a whole new foreign world.

Being a Christian, I reached out to pastors I know in America and Romania to ask if they could help or get involved and hopefully share it with their communities, but they didn’t want to "get involved into politics”, as they put it.

My entertainment background is from Hollywood, so I thought that maybe we should take that route and send it to the Academy Awards. It qualified as one of 144 eligible documentary films for 2023 Oscars with the original title, "Thy Neighbours”. Unfortunately without a lot of money or notable names behind our film, we didn’t go too far. We hired a producer rep to navigate through the distribution companies for them to release it. The big ones said that the film is too small for them. We did get a few offers from the smaller distribution companies, who wanted to acquire the rights – but we had to pay them in advance and they will have it on some of the digital platforms in the spring of 2025.
Instead of waiting for another 6 months for the world to HEAR THEIR VOICES we decided that the best way to reach people and share it with the world is actually here on Youtube. This way everyone can have access to it, no matter where they are, including Russia. And more than anything, the power is not in a distribution company’s hands but in your hands, the Kindness Ambassadors who care about what’s going on in Ukraine and feel called to make a difference.

So, on October 27, 2024 - my 45th birthday - here we are, passing the "distribution torch" onto YOU, with the hope and faith that it will reach the right Kindness Ambassadors who can make a much bigger difference than we could and that one day it will ignite a kindness movement in the world.

If you want to suport us and help us pay back some of our expanses you can donate here https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/elenabeuca
- or for a tax deductible donation, you can do so through our 501c fiscal sponsor - From the Heart- https://ellielstudios.com/our-films/thy-neighbours-film-2023/

We thank you in advance for you Kindness
Elena and Dave

Personal websites
https://elenabeucarogers.com
https://daverogers.me
Film production https://ellielstudios.com

About the Film

Produced by: Elena Beucă Rogers, Dave Rogers
Executive Produced by: M & M Fuchs
Co-Produced by : John Chidwick, Fineas Alexa
Asociate Producers: Daniel Truța and Ionuț Orha
Score by : Fineas Alexa
Edited by: Alexandra Tobias
Cinematography Ukraine: Elena Beucă Rogers
Cinematography Romania: Paul Pleșa, Jorge Chahin, Roland Paniti, Daniel Truța
Sound design: Marian Ioan Iacoban, Ionuț Grigore
Color Grading: Rareș Dima, Daniel Truța
Original song: "Set Free" by Odi Borz, Produced by Fineas Alexa
Song : "My awakening" by Ilona , Produced by Fineas Alexa