Victoria Trofimenko (Director and Screenwriter) was recently interviewed by TheCelebrity.Online Magazine and here is the Q&A session we had with Victoria.

Victoria Trofimenko As Cover Story Interview – March 2026 Magazine Edition

How do you introduce yourself?

Victoria Trofimenko — film and theatre director, screenwriter.

Struggle – What hardships have you gone through in life?

It might be easier to say when I didn’t experience hardships. My life has been a series of them since the very beginning.

I am originally Eastern European — Ukrainian, to be exact. I was born in the Soviet Union, which was not exactly the dream place to be born and raised, believe me. My childhood unfolded during a constant period of turbulence: Chernobyl in 1986, the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, and finally the long-awaited independence of Ukraine.

Then came the difficult and often bloody 1990s. I was a teenager at that time. Just when the world seemed to stabilize in the 2000s, Ukraine went through two revolutions — in 2004 and 2013–2014 — and eventually war: started in 2014, and then the full-scale invasion in 2022. This is when I left Ukraine, on the second day of the war.

Alongside these obvious historical and political circumstances, there were also my personal challenges — including the dream of becoming a filmmaker, a woman filmmaker… My father was very strict — almost despotic — and he was a doctor who never wanted to support my choice of becoming a director.

At one point I told him: I would rather spend ten years becoming who I truly want to be than one year becoming who you want me to be. So I did everything on my own, without his support. And I have never regretted that choice.

At that time, being a woman filmmaker was neither a common nor an easy path. I began my journey toward that dream in 1997.

But honestly, when has anything truly valuable in life ever been easy?

What do people usually not know about you?

Not many people know that I love baking sourdough bread. I like experimenting with different flavors and even colors of the bread and sharing it with people I care about.

When I’m in the mood, I can bake and share bread with my neighbors. Then I might stop baking for quite a while, and suddenly the desire comes back again.

Interestingly, I only started baking after moving to the United States. I never baked in Ukraine. For me it feels like pure alchemy, and I find working with dough very therapeutic.

I also enjoy cooking — but only when I truly feel like it. If cooking is expected from me, I simply won’t do it. In that case, better find a restaurant. I cook only when it’s my choice, when I want to share that kind of energy with people. So this side of me is known only to my close circle.

What sets you apart from others?

I never tried to set myself apart from others. In fact, I’m not even sure who “the others” are. Everyone is so different and unique.

What matters to me is preserving my own authenticity and not losing my core. At the same time, I respect the authenticity of others. I’m interested in people who have their own center.

I believe every human being is a universe. I feel comfortable communicating with different universes without dissolving into them — and without expecting them to dissolve into me.

I enjoy charismatic, honest, authentic people. We enrich each other while remaining ourselves.

What are your upcoming major events?

The next major event will likely be the Beverly Hills Film Festival next moth, where my film Bonding will be presented, produced by Stoner Ranch Productions, Barry and Carmen Nordstarnds. The film recently (March 13 2026) had its world premiere at the Omaha Film Festival, where it won the Best Feature Film award.

In terms of other projects, in December 2025 I premiered my theatre production Yakiv at the Ukrainian National Theatre, where I was both the director and the writer. It was a very large-scale production — 50 actors, around 100 costumes, and several tons of stage decoration.

Right now I’m taking some time to recover my energy and shape the agenda for my next creative projects.

What expert advice would you like to give?

I teach a directing actors workshop as a lecturer at the Moody College of Communication at the University of Texas at Austin. What I always tell my students is: learn from each other, but don’t copy each other.

Stay authentic. Your authenticity is where your real strength lies.

Your social media handles and website links?

• Website: www.victoriatrofimenko.com
• www.mamutopictures.com
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vtrofimenko/
• Instagram: @victoria_trofimenko_
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/victoria.trofimenko.10/
• IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm4975526/bio/