From documentaries to vertical series. Ukrainian film industry reporter Anastasia Sanzharovska reported on the participation of low-level projects in California

In the last three years, Ukrainian director Anastasia Sanzharovska has managed to produce a number of American film projects in Los Angeles - from documentaries and music videos to vertical series, which have become one of the Notable new formats for American streaming content. Anastasia's friend works with the Peacock streaming service and the largest vertical content platform, ReelShort.

Vertical series - directly related to robots in the USA. The format of short dramatic episodes, designed for us to watch on a smartphone, has led to the formation of a large film production sector in Los Angeles. Such series are often known in very simple terms, and one project can consist of dozens, or even hundreds of short episodes with a duration of 1–2 episodes.

For the directing team, this entails a fast pace: a significantly larger number of scenes must be shot during a single shift compared to traditional film or television series. This is the specific sector where Sanzharovska has been actively working since 2025.

Her American filmography already includes several vertical-format projects. Notably, Sanzharovska worked on the production teams for the miniseries "When We Meet Again", "The Billionaire Dad I Never Knew", "Plus Size Plus Love", and "Teach Me How to Say Goodbye". On these projects, she served as a second assistant director—a role involving direct participation in organizing the shoot and coordinating on-set operations.

However, the American chapter of her career extends beyond series production. Another project Anastasiia contributed to was the documentary "Hong Kong – Final Days of Freedom", which focuses on the struggle of Hong Kong residents for democratic rights. Working with a vast amount of documentary footage later proved significant for her own feature-length project, "Shrapnel".

The film "Shrapnel" is composed of footage shot by American journalist Robert Zirgulis, who traveled across Ukraine in the spring and summer of 2022, documenting the aftermath of the Russian invasion, daily life in cities and villages, destroyed homes, and the personal stories of Ukrainians.

In 2026, "Shrapnel" received a Special Award in the Best Documentary category at the Eastern Europe Film Festival. The film was also selected for the Los Angeles Lift-Off Film Festival program. Its festival journey continues.

Before her time in the U.S., Sanzharovska worked in the Ukrainian film and television industries. Her filmography includes serving as a second unit director on the series "Slid" (The Trace) and working on numerous short films, teasers, and commercials. She also directed the short film "What’s Wrong with Me"—based on her own screenplay—which won the Special Jury Award at the Diorama International Film Festival and was screened at other international festivals.

Her body of work also includes music videos. Notably, Sanzharovska was part of the directing team for the music video for Nigerian artist Kcee’s "Ojapiano" and for several upcoming videos by popular K-pop artists.

Currently, Anastasia is working on the post-production of her own short film, "The Spark", while also developing a new project with the working title "UnInnocent".

Thus, her American filmography is taking shape across several sectors: commercial series production, documentary filmmaking, music videos, and narrative short films. Los Angeles has become the place where these various paths have converged into a single professional trajectory.