What habit has been sustaining you lately?
Finding happiness in small things: fresh coffee, taking my thoughts for a walk in the forest, small talks. But one thing definitely stands apart: taking my camera wherever I go and documenting whatever I see—cinematic sunsets, random people in the streets, architecture, or the consequences of Russian attacks on Ukraine.
What time of day do you feel most like yourself?
Definitely when the sun is down and I’m about to go to bed. This is the time I try to stay away from my phone and dedicate all my attention to reading a book, writing, watching a movie, or studying.
When recently did you feel out of place?
I try to avoid places where I feel like that. Probably LinkedIn :) Maybe some professional or corporate environments that I used to interact with a lot. Living in a post-Soviet country has its setbacks: there aren’t many environments where you can just be yourself, have your own opinion, and show your real personality—be open, joke a lot, have emotions, and not pretend to be someone else.
What are you still holding onto even though you know you’ll eventually have to let go?
The past. Even though I work on letting it go, there’s still some subconscious inner expectation that life can be like it used to be before the war. The expectation that life can be calm and consist only of positive moments. No anxiety, no worries—just a simple life. Freedom, calmness, no crazy news from all over the world, no hate or primitive behaviors on social media, no deception, manipulation, or propaganda. No arms race. No AI race. That naive feeling that people can simply live in peace, respect each other, and value real things like meaningful human connections.
What scares you more today: change or staying the same? Why?
Definitely staying the same. We're on the brink of some of the most intense changes the human race has ever experienced. We can't stay the same. We have to adapt to survive.
Recommend a movie, an album, and a book and tell us why you liked each one.
Movie: Apocalypse Now by Francis Ford Coppola (it was my favorite film even before the war in Ukraine), and The Lobster by Yorgos Lanthimos.
Book: Cat’s Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut.
Album: Midnight Marauders from A Tribe Called Quest.
What is your favorite restaurant and what do you recommend we order?
A Duet Bucket at KFC, but only if you eat it by yourself while watching an NFL game.
Which friend have you admired lately, and why?
His name is Taka. I haven't met him in person. We haven't even spoken or chatted, but his work inspires me to create more. Looking at his work, I feel like there is no time—no past, no future. Everything blends together. Everything doesn’t matter, and everything matters. I stop caring too much about the result, stop overthinking, and just start creating.
I'm a marketer and a former semi-professional football player from Kyiv, Ukraine, trying to find my escape in film photography while navigating the uncertainty of life.