Award for “How to Divorce During the War” further raises profile of Vilnius’ burgeoning film ecosystem
Already the location for hit productions by HBO, Netflix, and the BBC, Vilnius’ reputation in global film has received another boost as Vilnius-based “How to Divorce During the War” has won a Directing Award at the Sundance Film Festival.
“How to Divorce During the War,” a darkly comedic drama set in Vilnius against the backdrop of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, has won the Directing Award: World Cinema Dramatic at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival. With the likes of HBO, Netflix, and the BBC all having shot major productions in Vilnius, the city’s status as a film production hub has been further strengthened by this latest high-profile award. As a result, the city has much to offer for film enthusiasts planning a visit.
Vilnius the “perfect setting” for tale of personal responses to Ukraine war
“How to Divorce During the War” follows Marija, an ambitious executive who initiates divorce proceedings with her husband the day before Russia attacks Ukraine. As the couple navigates their crumbling relationship, they are forced to confront their own privilege and moral compromises while war unfolds just a few hundred miles away.
The film aims to capture the complexity of life for ordinary Europeans as the invasion of Ukraine unfolded. And according to its award-winning director, Andrius Blaževičius, Vilnius provided the ideal canvas.
“Vilnius was the perfect setting for this story. I wanted to make a film about Europe, and I needed a capital city where I could capture that specific moment. Vilnius in 2022 was a city transformed – there was a huge number of Ukrainian refugees, Ukrainian flags appeared everywhere. As it is the capital, it is where the country’s response to the war was very visible, that tension between normal life and geopolitical crisis. The city itself preserved those visual markers of that historical moment, making it very easy to capture that documentary reality. When we filmed three years later, those same flags from February-March 2022 were still hanging in the streets,”said director Andrius Blaževičius
Vilnius as a backdrop to award-winning films and TV series
The film showcases Vilnius extensively, with principal photography taking place throughout the city’s UNESCO-protected Old Town and the suburb of Antaviliai.
In recent years, Vilnius has become a key European film hub, standing in for locations such as 1980s Ukraine in “Chernobyl,” Cold War-era Siberia in “Stranger Things,” and 19th-century Vienna in “Sisi.”
The Sundance Award is another feather in the cap for Vilnius’ burgeoning film sector. “We are proud that “How to Divorce During the War”, which is supported by the newly established Vilnius Film Fund, is gaining international recognition so quickly,” notes Jūratė Pazikaitė, Head of the Vilnius Film Office. The Vilnius Film Office administers the Vilnius Film Fund, established in 2025 to provide funding specifically for international co-productions filmed in the Lithuanian capital.
According to her, Vilnius is a film city that sustains a vibrant film ecosystem, bringing together creators, producers, and other stakeholders. While Vilnius Old Town and socialist modernist buildings remain the city’s most popular filming locations, film crews have also used the city’s green areas, including parks and lakes, as well as historical Lukiškes prison and the trendy post-industrial New Town district. In 2025, Vilnius hosted a wide range of genres: historical dramas, children’s films, crime and sci-fi series, action thrillers, and more.
Exploring ordinary European’s response to the invasion of Ukraine
Along with being a well-developed and adaptable location for major film productions, Vilnius also has a deep and specific connection with the Ukraine conflict that is the film’s main theme. The city welcomed 19,000 refugees in the first year of the conflict, with many locals willing to take in those fleeing the conflict. The film offers a timely meditation on a conflict that has had a profound impact across the region.
Variety praised the leads for their “finely tuned, delicately ironic performances” while The Film Verdict called it “intelligent” and noted one sequence as “one of the best scenes of marital fracture in recent memory.”
Explore familiar on-screen locations in a “chameleon” city
A visit to Vilnius is a rewarding experience for any fan of film and high quality television. Within the film industry, Vilnius is known as a “chameleon” city. Its diversity of architectural styles (socialist modernism, baroque, renaissance) has meant its streets and districts have doubled as everything from Rome, Berlin, Washington, Vienna and Stockholm.
The Vilnius Film Office has curated a range of tours taking visitors to iconic locations that have featured in major productions. Highlights include:
● Lukiškes Prison, a converted 19th century prison that is now a cultural centre and has featured in Stranger Things and the Netflix series Clark;
● Fabijoniškės and Šeškinė, adjacent 1960s districts of Vilnius whose distinctive socialist modernist architecture has Malmo in Young Wallander, Chernobyl,
● The Philharmonic building, which served as the stunning backdrop to scenes in Sisi.
Vilnius is easily accessible by direct flight from Frankfurt, Copenhagen, Helsinki, and other major cities across Europe, and also serves as a perfect base for exploring the region. With convenient transport links to Riga, Tallinn, and Poland, Vilnius is also the perfect base for regional holiday adventures.
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