For nearly 500 Ukrainian athletes killed in the war that Russia is waging against their country, the dream of taking part in the Olympics or any future sports competition has been forever shattered. To keep their memory alive, the Ukrainian NGO BRAND UKRAINE is telling a tragic story of six deceased athletes by using artificial intelligence to bring them back to life, if only for a brief moment in time. We spoke to Tim Makarov, head of Digital & Content at BRAND UKRAINE, who told us that the ultimate idea of the project, presented at the Paris Games, was to make people stop and think about the value of human life.

How did the idea for the project arise?

This idea was born in the Berlin agency BBDO. They proposed a framework concept, an idea, to show the tragic history of Ukrainian athletes who could not participate in the Olympics. They came to us with the concept, and we developed the idea and expanded the circle of partners, connecting the Ukrainian Ministries of Youth and Sports and of Foreign Affairs and the Office of the President of Ukraine. We worked together on the final design of the project, while the technical part stayed with BBDO. We built a communication strategy, and provided content distribution and legal support. The project was presented at the official Ukrainian site in Paris - Volia House - and influencers were involved.

How difficult was it to collect stories and to make the video? What techniques were used to ‘revive’ the protagonists?

The idea itself is very simple and clear - to tell the stories of Ukrainian athletes who died tragically and create their digital avatars. We have done a tremendous job. We used voice recordings, digitised them, used archival photos and video materials, and processed all this with the help of AI. The goal was for the digital copy of the person to be very humanlike, to evoke eeriness with reality and unreality at the same time. This was the meaning. Their stories are very powerful in themselves, and enhanced by AI technology they leave no one indifferent. I'll be honest - this project is very ‘on the edge‘. When we discussed it, we were afraid that we would not be understood, that people would not see the nakedness, defenselessness, pain and despair that we put into the words of the dead athletes behind the creepiness. The project presents a very simple idea - people who sincerely love their country, who want to live and achieve, become hostages of circumstances when their dreams, plans and lives are cut short. But they should be remembered. Every deed has a price, and it is often measured in human lives and destinies.

It must have been very painful for the families of the killed athletes to take part in the project and see the videos. What feedback did you receive from them at the end?

Of course, such a project could only be done with the consent of the closest relatives. This is an extremely important point: we showed, explained and demonstrated them what we were going to do. There were several dozen stories in the long list - but in the end, we agreed on six only. This took weeks of complicated negotiations. But when we showed the final result, the parents could not hold back their tears. They said: ‘Thank you, you are doing an extraordinary job. It will help preserve the memory of our child.’ As far as I know, none of them regret participating. We signed all the necessary legal documents, and only after that did the project get the green light. Everything was ready for the Olympics, and we went out for two weeks, showing and unfolding six extraordinary stories. Such a level of success was not expected - the reaction to the project exceeded all our expectations. And it is not surprising, as in the modern world of global communications true stories provoke complex and contradictory emotions.

What is the main message of the project - what do you hope the viewers will take home with them after watching the videos?

At BRAND UKRAINE we are engaged in spreading the truth about Ukraine and its realities in the conditions of Russian aggression. We use human stories for this. I am sure they best convey our pain, pride, zeal, gains and losses, what makes us humans, a strong and courageous nation. This is our mission - not just to talk about Ukraine, but also to make it a lovemark for the whole world. We are working on it so that there are more such powerful projects to come that touch people’s hearts and give an opportunity to stop and think about the value of human life.

You can see the videos and photos here and on Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/p/C-Dd7B7tueo/

https://www.instagram.com/p/C-SkUtONRJR/

https://www.instagram.com/p/C-VHXOdtdps/

https://www.instagram.com/p/C-YG_wHtNke/

https://www.instagram.com/p/C-ajpwSN7A6/

https://www.instagram.com/p/C-dWm1vNzDW/

Tim Makarov is Head of the Content & Digital Team at BRAND UKRAINE. He has spent 20 years in journalism, marketing and digital communications. His vocation is to tell stories and to create projects that change the world for the better.