One day in Chernobyl: A book about the filming of The Russian Woodpecker in the Chernobyl Exclusion

One Day in Chernobyl: How I Filmed The Russian Woodpecker is a powerful memoir by Fedor Alexandrovich, offering a deeply personal account of art, risk, and discovery inside the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone.

Structured in six chapters, this intimate narrative follows a single day that unfolds into something far greater-a journey into the heart of one of the most mysterious places on Earth, and into the making of the documentary The Russian Woodpecker, which won the Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival in 2015.

Blending memoir, reflection, and behind-the-scenes storytelling, Alexandrovich recounts the process of filming in a landscape marked by silence, radiation, and history. Among abandoned buildings and the looming presence of the Duga radar-known as the "Russian Woodpecker"-the line between reality and obsession begins to blur.

This is not only a story about filmmaking. It is a meditation on truth, fear, and the role of the artist in confronting the past. With vivid detail and poetic intensity, One Day in Chernobyl captures the tension of working in a forbidden zone and the emotional weight of uncovering hidden narratives.

A memoir of six chapters, a single day, and a lifetime of questions-this book invites readers into a world where history echoes, and art becomes a form of investigation.