Paula E. Kirman and Adam Bentley have previously produced two attention-grabbing, grant-funded short documentaries exposing controversial monuments to Nazis and their collaborators in Edmonton.
A Monumental Secret (2018)
A Monumental Secret (2018) features two close friends grappling with a controversial monument sitting close to home. The film examines a monument in St. Michael’s Cemetery in Edmonton, which honours those who fought during World War II, including with the 14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS. The film was produced with support from the Edmonton Arts Council and was an official selection at the Cinemaway/Kinomarshrut Film Festival in Lviv, Ukraine (World Premiere), Kyiv Film Festival, Bobritsa Film Festival, and the Austria International Film Festival in Vienna.
Monumental Secrets (2022)
Monumental Secrets (2022) further explores the theme of who we choose to honour. Presented through the perspective of Paula as a Jewish journalist and activist, the film centres on the bust of Roman Shukhevych at Edmonton’s Ukrainian Youth Unity Centre. Shukhevych was a military leader of the nationalist Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) and a Nazi collaborator. The film also further explores problematic monuments and place names in the city. This film was produced with support from the Alberta Foundation for the Arts. and received media attention due to its release following Yaroslav Hunka receiving a standing ovation in Canada’s Parliament. Hunka is a Ukrainian Canadian who fought in the SS Division Galicia of the Waffen-SS.
No Secret Monuments 