Project Idea
Infinitive is a feature documentary film project that follows a young gymnast from Ukraine who has relocated to Austria because of the war and is now trying to acquire Austrian citizenship in order to be able to participate in international competitions as the representative of Austria and potentially qualify for the Olympic games in LA in 2028.
Context and Background
Serafyma Sytnikova arrived in Austria as a refugee, displaced by the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Formerly a competitive gymnast in Ukraine, she had to quickly adapt to a new environment and begin rebuilding her athletic career. Her rise has been remarkable: she became Austrian National Champion in 2023 (Junior) and again in 2024 (Senior), training under coach Oleksandra Konovalenko, who herself comes from Crimea—a Ukrainian peninsula that was annexed by Russia in 2014.
Despite strong results and support from within the federation, Serafyma’s citizenship application was rejected in 2024—a decision likely influenced by the growing influence of right-wing politics in the Austrian government. The federation encouraged her to reapply, and she is currently awaiting the outcome.
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In 2025, following a political shift to the right in Austria, the Austrian Gymnastics Federation (Turnsport Austria) changed its regulations regarding foreign athletes: non-citizens are now only permitted to compete out of competition, excluding them from official rankings and titles. In the meantime, she continues to train with the hope of representing Austria at the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.
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This is where the documentary begins with the aim of capturing her journey up until the 2028 Olympic Games.
Concept
Infinitive is a long-term documentary that follows 16-year-old gymnast Serafyma Sytnikova over several years, as she lives and trains in Austria after fleeing the war in Ukraine. While grounded in observation, the film blends documentary with elements of fiction. It shifts between external reality and Serafyma’s inner world—using first-person narration, stylized sequences, and archival material to bring her thoughts and dreams to the surface.
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The film moves between opposites: silence and ovation, waiting and motion, high-speed sequences and long static shots, extreme emotional close-ups and wide, almost empty contextual frames. Serafyma becomes both subject and narrator—observed by the camera, but also taking the camera into her own world, as in a video blog or self-portrait. Her reality is shaped by uncertainty and structure, repetition and isolation. Her dreams, on the other hand, are expressive and stylized, opening up a space for escape and authorship.
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The title Infinitive reflects her situation. Like a verb in its base form, Serafyma is in motion but not yet defined. She has direction and ambition, but her identity—legally, socially, personally—remains unresolved. Her past includes trauma from early abuse in sport, the war in Ukraine, and the upheaval of relocating without language, plan, or stability. Her present is shaped by sacrifice: online schooling to make time for training, and social isolation. Her future is uncertain: she dreams of the 2028 Olympics, but faces major obstacles.
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She is a member of the Austrian national team, but no longer trains officially with them—her coach had to leave the federation. Her first citizenship application was rejected in 2024, likely affected by Austria’s political shift to the right. Returning to Ukraine is not an option. Even if citizenship is granted, Olympic qualification demands a top 20 world ranking, in a system often marked by bias, politics, and corruption. Add to this the physical injuries and mental strain that follow her from early experiences in sport.
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Infinitive does not celebrate sport as a heroic journey, nor does it promise that hard work will be rewarded. It is about living inside the uncertainty—when effort doesn’t lead to success, and dreams may stay just out of reach. The film shifts attention from achievement to process: the monotony, the exhaustion, the small rituals of repetition.
Key Topics
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Coming of Age in Unstable Times
The film follows Serafyma during a crucial period of adolescence, where identity is being shaped under pressure. She is not only growing up, but doing so between languages, systems, and cultural expectations—without the certainty of belonging anywhere. -
Being a Refugee and the Politics of Integration
Serafyma’s story opens up broader questions about migration, identity, and the bureaucratic and political barriers faced by young refugees in Europe today. Her case is shaped not only by personal effort, but by the shifting landscape of citizenship law and public opinion. -
The Unspoken Side of Competitive Sport
The film explores the hidden side of elite sport: emotional and physical strain, early abuse, and the political forces that often override talent. It shows how effort does not always lead to opportunity—and how corruption, bias, and inequality shape who gets to compete. -
Sport as Structure and Escape
For Serafyma, gymnastics is both a form of control and a way out—a space of discipline, repetition, and exhaustion, but also imagination, expression, and hope. The film moves between these layers, staying close to the contradictions that define her world.
Ethical Approach
This film touches on a wide range of sensitive and socio-political issues: displacement, integration, citizenship, nationalism, trauma, and the politics of elite sport. It is crucial that Serafyma is not instrumentalized to support a fixed narrative or political message. Instead, the film seeks to hold space for complexity—refusing simplification or binary logic. Serafyma’s story is not one of pure victimhood or pure triumph, and her life cannot be reduced to symbols or headlines. The approach is grounded in respect, nuance, and care: to show how personal experience is shaped by larger systems, without flattening it into a single point of view. Nothing here is black and white, and the film invites viewers to stay with that ambiguity—to observe, reflect, and question rather than judge.