The first priority of the SUNNY BUNNY Film Festival is to stand for understanding and acceptance. The festival does not seek to offend the public. Ukraine is a secular country where people of various religions and beliefs coexist side by side.

SUNNY BUNNY is an international film festival. Its dates are scheduled in advance according to the international festival calendar and are set for the second half of April. The fact that these dates now coincide with Easter is purely a coincidence.

At the same time, we believe that a part of Ukrainian society has merely used Easter or Good Friday as a pretext to voice their disapproval of the festival (or the LGBTQIA+ community) altogether—while in fact promoting homophobic and discriminatory views, and openly expressing hate and calls for violence, which go against the very Christian values they claim to uphold.

We respect all faiths and never intended to provoke or “cause a stir,” as some are inclined to believe. However, we must emphasize that Ukraine is a secular state, and invoking Christian holidays is nothing more than a manipulation that masks homophobia and hatred. In a secular country, a wide range of events unrelated to religious observances take place during religious holidays—in theaters, cinemas, and other venues. SUNNY BUNNY is just one of them.

Our goal is to amplify the voices of the queer community, to promote equality and respect, and to uphold European and Ukrainian values of acceptance and understanding.

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