THE STORY
Yurii nearly worked himself to death
On Christmas Eve, Ukrainian truck driver Yurii faints in the shower of a motorway car park. Doctors diagnose acute kidney failure and heart problems, but his employer does not believe him. Yurii worked for Girteka, one of Europe's largest transport companies, which drives for Ikea, Amazon and other multinationals.
It almost got him killed. In this short 'graphic novel'-style documentary, Yurii tells his story.
'Drive until you drop' was realised by Docwerkers on behalf of FNV (Federatie Nederlandse Vakbonden) and ITF (International Transport Federation).
Approach
Showing the story through drawings
We collaborated with Lithuanian filmmaker Lukas Čestovas, to immediately capture Yurii's testimony and his dire health condition.
These recordings were kept, to make room for dialogue with the employer. But the latter denied any responsibility. Yurii's story had to be brought out into the open .
We supported Yurii's testimony with animated graphic novel-style reconstructions, archive footage and documents. For the screenplay and visual style, we took inspiration from the popular true crime genre.
Result
Picked up in The Guardian
The short film 'Drive until you drop' , and its accompanying dossier on Yurii and his former employer Girteka was picked up by several European publications.
Also by British quality newspaper The Guardian, which brought a wide-ranging investigation into Yurii's story and the many complaints from Girteka employees.
