230 - Julia Kochetova

A Small Voice: Conversations With Photographers

Julia Kochetova (b. 1993) is a Ukrainian photojournalist and documentary filmmaker based in Kyiv. Her work focuses on firsthand storytelling as a method, researching topics of the war generation, post-traumatic stress disorder, and feminism.

Julia studied journalism at Taras Shevchenko National University (UA) and Mohyla School of Journalism (UA), alongside participating in IDFAcademy (NL). As a freelancer, Julia has covered the Maidan revolution (2013-2014), the annexation of Crimea (2014), and the Russia-Ukraine war (2014-now). She is a regular contributor to Der Spiegel, Vice News, Zeit, Bloomberg, The Guardian, amongst others.

In 2023, Julia won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Continuing News Coverage: Long Form with VICE News Tonight and in 2024, just a few weeks ago, was the global winner of the Open Format category in the World Press Photo awards for her multi-media project War Is Personal.

In episode 230, Julia discusses, among other things:

• Viewing the war as a long-term project.
• Not choosing to be a war photoghrapher.
• Still photographs no longer ‘working’ - importance of text.
• How her WPP winning project was done ‘last minute’.
• Her love/hate relationship with Instagram.
• How all her plans changed in 2014 with the Maidan Revolution.
• Her documentary film project See You Later.
• What she means by ‘it’s about the photographs I haven’t taken’.
• A valuable lesson learned about behaving ethically.
• How war has deprived her of the capacity for joy.

Referenced:

• Oleksandr Komiakhov
• Daria Kolomiec

Website | Instagram

“I’m really grateful that our story is being told by Ukrainian photographers, but it never was about career ambition. We Ukrainian storytellers were never in the position that we chose to become war photographers. I keep saying I’m not a war photographer. I’m photographing war because this is what’s happening in my country. I have zero wish to photograph any other wars. I’m doing this because this is my war. That’s the only accurate skill I have.”

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