Oleksiy Palianychka
A soldier of the 57th Separate Motorized Brigade. Theater scholar, theater critic, previously worked at the Lviv Academic Theater of Miniatures “Both People and Puppets.”
Author of the short story “Spring, Memory, and Sugar Grass” in the collection Stories of Warriors, in which, through conversations with his brother, childhood memories, and war experiences, he creates a profound meditation on memory, loss, and love. At the center is a person learning to accept the past in order to live in the present. The world in this story changes, but what sustains remains — touch, warmth, and light.
Military path
He has been serving in the Armed Forces of Ukraine since September 2024. A soldier in the 57th Separate Motorized Brigade, he works as a spotter in an FPV drone crew.
He sometimes finds time to write, as putting words “on paper” helps him structure reality.
He describes his experience as “routine and uneventful”:
A few kilometers from the forward base, there are moments of complete silence. No gunfire, no explosions. Even the radio chatter with the battalion command is quiet. This can last for up to an hour. It feels as if the war has already ended. You sit in the foxhole, listening to the rustle of small animals around you. The moon. The stars… Silence. Bearded faces of your comrades. You and the world. Beautiful… If it weren’t for the war.
Civilian Path
Oleksii is 33 years old. He was born in the village of Mala Zahorivka in Chernihiv region and lives in Lviv.
He graduated from Ivan Franko Lviv National University with a degree in Theater Studies.
He worked at the “Both People and Puppets” Theater and wrote theater criticism.
For him, art is a way to observe, reflect, and transform.
After the war began, he continued writing — because “words help structure reality.”
How he started writing
I began writing in my first year at the Ivan Franko College of Humanities and Pedagogy. These were short stories that, in one way or another, conveyed the emotional palette of my experiences. Life often feels like a labyrinth of thoughts, feelings, and life’s “impossibilities.” That’s probably why I write — to make sense of myself.
Favorite Books, Music, and Films
It’s hard to single out favorite books. I adore the worlds of Miyazaki and Tolkien — they feel very alive. I’ve read Tolkien’s The Silmarillion six times. Among the most recent readings that stayed with me are the essays of Simone Weil published by Shrapnel. I always return to the letters of Seneca.
As for films, as I mentioned, Hayao Miyazaki tops the list. I would also add two other Japanese directors — Makoto Shinkai and Mamoru Hosoda. Outside of anime, films like Into the Wild and Forrest Gump had a strong impact on me. For me, these films translate into phrases: “Happiness can be felt when there is someone to share it with” and “Life is unpredictable.” In 2021, I never would have believed I’d one day take up arms.
Music is the same — my taste changes over time. Since June, when we moved into the dugout, the album Nebulous Night by the Norwegian band Röyksopp fits my mood perfectly — an electronic journey inward against the backdrop of nature (because we’re in a foxhole) and war.
Faith is a powerful thing. I believe it plays an important role. But faith alone is not enough. We must work persistently — through diplomacy, through resisting the enemy on the battlefield, and through the internal transformation of ourselves as a society and as a state. And, more plainly, we simply have no other choice.
My name is Nemo. Nemo comes from Ancient Greek and means “no one.” Let my texts and my actions speak for me.