Mud baths and missile threats: Irish documentary captures life in a Ukrainian sanatorium

Gar O’Rourke's film in Odesa took an interesting turn when the Russians invaded Ukraine. Sanatorium has since been selected as Ireland's entry in the Academy Awards, writes Esther McCarthy

Gar O’Rourke and a scene from his Odesa-made documentary, Sanatorium.

Galway filmmaker Gar O’Rourke recently learned that his documentary has been selected to represent Ireland for an Oscar run. The Irish Film and Television Academy (IFTA) has put forward Sanatorium, O’Rourke’s powerful film told in the Ukrainian language, as Ireland’s entry for the International Feature Film Category at next spring’s Academy Awards.

Sanatorium follows in the footsteps of Oscar-nominated An Cailín Ciúin and Oscar shortlisted Kneecap to compete with films from around the world for the Oscar. The selection is further proof of Ireland’s strength in depth when it comes to international filmmaking - others selected in the category in previous years include Viva (in Spanish, 2006), Gaza (in Arabic, 2019), and In the Shadow of Beirut (in Arabic, 2024).