A coffee business turned into a humanitarian mission.
“And now we have war,” Yulia said—and the room changed.
I stopped filming and gave everyone a moment. Her husband was there to comfort her, and I was grateful he was. Having documented 9/11 in New York, I recognized some of what I was seeing: grief, anger, fear, and the feeling that the world has suddenly become unrecognizable. It was her story, not mine, but I understood the weight of that moment.
Yulia and her brother Andrey started Sibs as a coffee-roasting business in Ukraine, eventually opening two cafés and becoming part of their community. When war came to their country, Sibs took on a different purpose. I made the film to keep that story personal and human.
Editing was difficult because Yulia gave me so much honest material. The finished film has since been used to help raise more than $100,000 in humanitarian aid. This is why I keep returning to documentary work: when someone opens their heart to you, the job is to pay attention and take care of what they have shared.
PROJECT DETAILS
Project: Sibs
Format: Documentary film
Location: Seattle, Washington
My roles: Producer and Cinematographer
Focus: The Ukrainian founders of Sibs Coffee and their humanitarian mission
Impact: Used to help raise more than $100,000 in humanitarian aid
ABOUT DEREK
I’m a producer and cinematographer with more than 20 years of experience across feature films, documentaries, television, commercials, and branded content. I’m the founder of Kaifilms, where I work across development, financing, production, and cinematography to help projects move from the first conversation to the final frame.
Kaifilms: www.kaifilms.com
IMDb: www.imdb.me/derekmakesfilms
Contact: www.derek-johnson.com/contact