SIRKO Trip 2 Shooting Schedule
Today
Feb 18 — Wednesday
Day 5 of 17
Mechnikov Hospital, Dnipro
Feb 14 Saturday Call: 11 AM
Rocco
Feb 15 Sunday Call: TBD
Rocco
Feb 16 Monday Call: 7 AM
Rocco Interviews Surgery
Feb 17 Tuesday Call: 6:30 AM
Rocco Bohdan Night Interviews
Feb 18 Wednesday Call: 8 AM
Rocco Snow/Rain Surgery Interview
1 PMFilm Rocco performing surgery
2 PMInterview with Olga
4 PMRocco run
Potential for snow and rain today
Bohdan: Not on ED roster | Dept/ICU: Lombrozo N.Yu. | Day ED: Nakaznyi | Night ED: Hulidin
Feb 19 Thursday Call: 9 AM
Rocco Andrii Birthday Surgery Interview
Feb 20 Friday Call: 11 AM
Rocco Last Day Surgery Interview Rocco Departs
Feb 21 Saturday Call: 3 PM
Bohdan Double Night Shoot
Feb 22 Sunday Day Off
Day Off
Feb 23 Monday Call: TBD
Bohdan Day Train Evac Antoniy Night
Feb 24 Tuesday Call: TBD
Bohdan Day
Feb 25 Wednesday Call: TBD
Bohdan Day
Feb 26 Thursday Call: TBD
Bohdan Day Antoniy Night
Feb 27 Friday Call: 5 PM
Bohdan Double Night Shoot
Feb 28 Saturday Call: TBD
Hryhorii Arrives
Mar 1 Sunday Day Off
Day Off
Mar 2 Monday Call: TBD
Depart
Unscheduled Scenes 0/0
Priority
Rocco at the morgue — Ideally get someone who works there to let Rocco in and give him a more detailed explanation
Andrii voice memo
Bohdan voice memo
Ride in ambulance with a patient being transported to Mechnikov
Military Hospital — All steps of medical process. Transporting a patient from military hospital to Mechnikov
Train evacuation
Night shift with Bohdan
Bohdan and Sasha (at Sasha's coffee shop)
Bohdan and Sasha at a concert or party — Show how life continues in Dnipro. Young people enjoying life.
Evening with Yuri at home — Similar to how we filmed your family at dinner. See his normal life outside hospital.
Internally displaced people in Pavlorad — Find someone going to Dnipro to highlight influx of people into the city
Secondary
Antoniy with his mom
Vadym with his child at night
Young doctors hanging out at bar
Sviatoslav at Zoom school
Olga on her hours-long bus ride — Need to ask what kind of bus she rides
Internally displaced people help center
Third
Internally displaced people arrive at train station
Vets playing volleyball — Tuesday and Thursday
Interview Tracker
Yurii Skrebets
Scheduled: Feb 16 (3PM) + Feb 19 (10:30AM)
Natalia Malisevych
Scheduled: Feb 17 (3PM)
Olga Pavlichenko
Scheduled: Feb 17 (1:30PM) + Feb 18 (2PM)
Vadym Perepelytsia
Not yet scheduled
Rocco Armonda
Scheduled: Feb 20 (3PM)
Principal Subjects
Dr. Andrii Sirko
Head, Center for Cerebral Neurosurgery
Professor, Doctor of Medical Sciences. 25+ years at Mechnikov. ~2,000 war-related operations since 2014. Father: Hryhorii (beekeeper, arriving Feb 28). Wife: Tetiana. Son: Sviatoslav. Birthday: Feb 19. Signs the duty roster, controls all access.
Dr. Bohdan Sirko
Neurosurgeon (Andrii's son)
"It's just job" pragmatism. Oct 26 2024: operating during ballistic missile strike, thought he was dead, finished surgery. Trip 2 ED shifts: Feb 17, 21, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27 (day); Feb 17, 21, 27 (night). Best overnights: Feb 21 + Feb 27.
Neurosurgeons & Residents
Nikita Lombrozo
Vascular Neurosurgeon
Young daughter. Andrii's next PhD candidate. High surgical volume on wounded patients. On duty: Feb 18 (today). Story thread: Young father doing vascular neurosurgery under fire.
Antoniy Nakaznyi
Resident
High surgical volume on wounded patients. Heavy rotation on duty roster (most frequent day ED coverage). Story thread: Workhorse of the department.
Radoslav Malyi
Resident
On duty roster: Feb 21. Story thread: develop on ground.
Interns — "A Different Front Line"
Mykhailo Fidria
3rd Year Surgical Intern
Desperately wants neurosurgery residency, exam this year. Father fighting at front. Cooks simple food late at night, shares with everyone on duty. Trip 2 shifts: Feb 17, 21. Story: Father at war, son saves wounded. Midnight cooking = humanity in exhaustion.
Artem Tretiakov
Surgical Intern
Father fighting at front. Trip 2 shifts: Feb 23, 25, 28. Story: Father at war, son in hospital. Paired with Mykhailo = "interns whose fathers fight."
Nurses
Olga Pavlichenko
OR Nurse
Husband at front. 1+ hour bus commute each way, leaves before dawn, returns near midnight, sleeps 4-5 hours. "Adores Rocco." Story: Bus commute = daily sacrifice.
Karina Kubinets
OR Nurse
Husband at front. Works 24-hour shifts with small children. Story: Paired portrait of wartime motherhood in the OR.
Key Hospital Figures
Yurii Skrebets
Deputy Medical Director
Former Hospitallers medical team leader. Wounded in combat, returned to Mechnikov. Recently injured AGAIN in Shahed drone strike. Completed internship with Andrii. Was not interviewed Trip 1. Story: Repeated sacrifice.
Natalia Malisevych
Neuro-ICU Anesthesiologist
Husband: Roman (fighting at front). Met Roman when Andrii operated on Roman's brother for war head injury. Story: War injury to surgery to love to husband now at front. Full circle.
Vadym Perepelytsia
PhD in Medicine (Andrii's 2nd PhD student)
Became a father and defended his dissertation in the same week. Story: New life amid war + academic achievement under fire.
Visiting (Feb 14-20)
Dr. Rocco Armonda
Georgetown / former Walter Reed
Has traveled to Mechnikov 3x, secured millions in equipment. "Two days in Ukraine = worst month in Iraq." Here Feb 14-20, train departs 11PM Feb 20.
Family
Tetiana Sirko
Andrii's wife
Open to filming, always welcoming.
Sviatoslav Sirko
Andrii's son (younger)
Now online school (air raids force basement evacuations). Evening physical training 2x/week: gym + swimming/martial arts.
Hryhorii Sirko
Andrii's father (beekeeper)
Arriving Dnipro Feb 28 with beeswax AND honey. Story: Agrarian-to-OR, beeswax = bone wax, the land Russia covets. Bees dormant in winter.
Story Architecture — "Everybody Has Their Windmill"

Central thesis: The unconquerable spirit of the Ukrainian people, as exemplified by Mechnikov and Dnipro.

1
Father-Son (Andrii + Bohdan in OR)
Two generations of neurosurgeons operating together under fire.
2
Fathers at War (Mykhailo & Artem)
Their fathers fight at the front while they save the wounded. "Interns whose fathers fight."
3
Husbands at War (Olga, Karina, Natalia)
Motherhood + 24hr shifts + absent husbands. Wartime sacrifice on the home front.
4
Beeswax to Bone Wax (Hryhorii to Andrii)
Agrarian Ukraine to the operating room. Hryhorii arrives Feb 28 with beeswax + honey.
5
Full Patient Arcs
Tumor: admission to discharge. Wounded: ambulance to surgery to train evacuation.
6
The Front Arrives at Night
Overnight shifts, ambulance arrivals, ER chaos. Prime windows: Feb 21 + Feb 27 (Bohdan doubles).
7
Repeated Sacrifice (Yurii Skrebets)
Combat medic to hospital administrator to wounded twice. Keeps returning.
No-Go Zones
Zaporizhzhia / Khortytsia — DO NOT GO. Constant KAB + drone attacks.
Nikopol / Kapulivka — DO NOT GO. Most dangerous area, continuous artillery. Russians hunting civilians with drones.
Anatoliy Chudnovsky / Illinka — NOT FEASIBLE. In Zaporizhzhia danger zone.
General Safety Notes

Air raid sirens are routine in Dnipro. Follow local protocol — basement shelter when sirens sound. Sviatoslav's school goes online during alerts.

Hospital is the safest place to be during an alert. Stay at Mechnikov if sirens sound during shooting.

Nighttime filming carries additional risk. Stay with hospital staff and follow their guidance on shelter procedures.

SIRKO — Trip 2 Shooting Schedule — Feb 14 to Mar 2, 2026
Last Updated: