The Guide (film)

The Guide (Ukrainian: Поводир, Povodyr) is a 2014 Ukrainian drama film directed by Oles Sanin. The film stars Stanislav Boklan, Anton Greene, Jeff Burrell, Iryna Sanina and Jamala. It focuses around a young Peter Shamrock who serves as the guide of a blind bard in Soviet Ukraine. There is a special audiodescripted version for blind people.

The film was produced by Pronto Film with a budget of about ₴16,762,000, with the Ukrainian State Film Agency financing parts. The film would then go on to make ₴16.6 million, although ₴14.1 million was given back to the Ukrainian State Film Agency, making the true amount at around ₴2.5 million. It was selected as the Ukrainian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 87th Academy Awards, but was not nominated. There was some controversy over the selection of the film in Ukraine regarding the voting process.

Following the Russian Invasion of Ukraine, several cinemas including Regal Cinemas began screenings of The Guide to raise money for relief efforts in Ukraine through the Ukraine Relief Fund. On 13 March 2022, a screening of The Guide in Salem, Massachusetts, was attended by the Governor of Massachusetts, Charlie Baker, and Congressman Seth Moulton. By 17 March 2022, it was screened across 600 cinemas in the United States.