Japan Broadcaster Making Movie About Ukrainian Refugees in Russia

ROSTOV-ON-DON, February 4 (Sputnik) — Japan Broadcasting Corporation NHK has begun filming a documentary about southeastern Ukrainian residents finding shelter in Russia's Rostov Region after fleeing violence in their homeland, a spokesperson for the region's government said Wednesday.

"The crew consisting of the director Yuichi Tanaka, an operator and a translator, has already arrived in Rostov Region, and yesterday held its first shooting," the spokesperson told RIA Novosti.

He also specified that the first scene was about a Ukrainian family, living for a time in one of the refugee centers in the Neklinovsky district of Rostov Region.

"The family consists of a mother, three children and a grandfather. Their father [the children's father], an independence supporter, was killed in Ukraine. Following his death, they left for Rostov Region. Yesterday they moved from the temporary accommodation to Yekaterinburg, where their relatives live. The Japanese were very touched by this story, and they filmed it," the source told RIA Novosti.

According to the spokesperson, the film crew has no clear plan for the documentary. Every day they are looking for a new story. The filming is expected to last about one and a half months.

In July 2014, Yuichi Tanaka together with a group of foreign journalists visited Rostov Region to make a TV program about people living in temporary accommodation in Russia. According to the channel's marketing service, over 25 million Japanese watched the popular program.