Aaron MacCarley worked in Kharkiv, Kherson and other very dangerous areas of Ukraine. He produced Sunflowers in the Rain – a film about international volunteers and Ukrainians who support the heroic resistance.
Sadly, the West is forgetting about the daily horror of the war. To remind everyone about the on-going tragedy, Aaron and Sunflower Scotland conducted an exclusive charity screening at The Edinburgh City Chambers. The event was dedicated to the 2nd anniversary of the devastating war in Ukraine: the most important catastrophe of the 21st century.
The night was opened by The Lord Provost of Edinburgh Robert Aldridge, US Consul General Jack Hillmeyer, US Army Major General Mark MacCarley, and Poland Vice Consul Ms Teresa Matusiak. They gave speeches to express the solidarity with the people of Ukraine, and the on-going efforts of their governments to support Ukraine’s fight for its independence and freedom.
Sunflowers in the Rain is extremely important to remind everyone in the UK, the USA and Europe about the continued horror of the war and that people in Ukraine need help now more than ever. Sunflower Scotland were proud to help Aaron MacCarley to organise the closed-door screening.
The Lord Provost of Edinburgh noted that Aaron chose Edinburgh because because volunteers from Edinburgh are featured in the film (Sunflower Scotland), and Edinburgh’s world-leading cultural heritage, in particular being the home of the Edinburgh International Film Festival, and the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.

Guests saw unique, previously unavailable footage of how people in Ukraine suffer every day. The film took showed what life is like in the constantly-shelled Bakhmut, how parts of Kharkiv were obliterated, and how animals fight for their life in the flooded Kherson.

The film told storied of volunteers, who continue their work to help people in the most dangerous places, despite the hardship and risk to their lives. How charities bring food to frontline villages. How vets save lives of animals rescued from villages and towns which were obliterated by bombs and gunfire.

Aaron MacCarley, the film director from Los Angeles, California, spent the last year in Ukraine. He travelled to the main population centres in close proximity to the front line, such as Kharkiv and Kherson. He ventured to Kramatorsk, Toretsk and Chasiv Yar, the areas in the epicentre of the on-going war, to witness the suffering of the people and film the gory truth. Aaron came to Edinburgh, to share his experiences with the audience.

The screening ended with a long ovation. Residents of the Scottish capital were very moved by the film. Many British newspapers wrote about this event (including The Scotsman, The Independent, The National, and The Evening Standard, among others) which shows that this film is very topical and people in the UK were genuinely interested to learn more about the subject.
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