So many stars of Russian cinema could be seen in Nizhny! Mikhail Porechenkov, Konstantin Khabensky, Ekaterina Vilkova, Denis Shvedov, Pavel Tabakov, Elena Zakharova, Lyudmila Artemyeva, Anna Chipovskaya, Maxim Stoyanov, Yulia Aleksandrova, Yulia Khlynina, Ekaterina Klimova, Anton Filipenko, Aglaya Tarasova, Ravshana Kurkova, Anton Pampushny, Ksenia Surkova – and this is only a small part of the names! Here is director Alexey German, and artist Elena Okopnaya, screenwriter Andrey Zolotarev…
The closing ceremony of the festival took place at the Nizhny Novgorod Academic Drama Theatre named after M. Gorky. Its hosts were Moscow actors Pavel Tabakov and Angelina Strechina. This theatre hosted the competitive screenings of films and the opening ceremony of the festival.
The winners were congratulated by the jury members: directors Yuri Moroz and Anna Melikyan, cameraman Denis Alarcon Ramirez, composer Ryan Otter, and film critic Vasily Stepanov.
The competition simultaneously featured 20 short and full-length feature and documentary films of a wide variety of genres.
First there was a special prize – from the international society “Fishermen & Hunters” with the wording “For courage and originality”. It was awarded to the short satirical film “Torbasa, or How We Chopped Meat” by Nikita Davydov. The director from Yakutsk received a beautiful statuette from the St. Petersburg sculptor and a certificate in the amount of 300 thousand rubles. The award was presented by actor Maxim Stoyanov (“Oh, this is my favorite actor!” – some young man suddenly shouted), as well as representatives of the society “Fishermen & Hunters”.
And this film was crowned with another prize: “Best Drama” (Nikita Davydov and Evgeny Nikolaev). A tragicomic story about a crime and lynching in a snowy Yakut village.
Director Yuri Moroz presented two diplomas “For a Bright Debut”. “This nomination is not in the festival regulations,” he said, “but the jury decided to recognize two works: the films “Atykuda” by Ksenia Andrianova and “Minuta” by Mikhail Ispiskov.”
Camera operator Denis Alarcon Ramirez awarded the prize for the best visual solution to the film “Atykuda”, camera operator Vladimir Ushakov.
The film “Where Our Home Is: Khakassia” was awarded for the best musical solution (short film, non-fiction). Directors Vladimir Tarasov and Dmitry Kvashnin said that they won the pitching, received 500 thousand rubles, and shot this film in 10 days. Their next film is coming soon – about Ossetia.
Photo: Press service of the film festival
Nomination “Best Acting”. Actress Yulia Aleksandrova (Palt’s mother from “The Word of a Boy”) said: “The jury’s opinion was unanimous and wholehearted – this is Maria Smolnikova, “Razezd”. When Maria appeared on screen, it was impossible to tear yourself away from her.” A correspondent for “RG” was present at the screening and testifies: the audience received this short comedy incredibly emotionally, it literally walked on a standing ovation, with universal Homeric laughter. It was immediately clear: it would not go without awards. And indeed, it received the audience sympathy award. Director Maria Melenevskaya said at the discussion that “Razezd” was filmed at the Sverdlovsk Film Studio, with the help of students from the Film School. That for many on the team this work was a debut.
And then the audience told the director: “Your film is about ordinary people. Interesting observations, recognizable life situations. Thank you. And what wonderful work Maxim Stoyanov and Tatyana Dogileva have!”
Tatyana Soboleva was named the best director, who shot the full-length documentary film “Against the Wind” – about a strong woman, wife, mother. The film is dedicated to the memory of her son, who died in May in the SVO zone. The action takes place in the Nogai steppe in the north of Dagestan. “This film should be shown in schools – as a historical document of the era,” – this is the opinion expressed by one of the viewers.
Director Yuri Moroz announced the main character – the winner in the nomination “Best Film”. It was “King Lear” by Yakut director Sergei Potapov. He shot a black and white film with a small budget in the Republican boarding house for the elderly and disabled. At the junction of documentary and feature films, at the junction of theater and cinema. And they showed it in the drama theater.
The story of the preparation for the production of the famous Shakespearean tragedy, “a bit of an experimental play.” One of the scriptwriters, Angela Popova, told how quickly the film was ready: “The script was written in two weeks and filmed in eight days. Both professional theater and film actors and patients of the boarding school are busy.”
Thus, out of 20 competition works, two are Yakut, and they were noted – they received three prizes.
Photo: Press service of the film festival
Finale of the ceremony: credits on the screen, all members of the “Gorky Fest” team are listed. To live music – the Moscow group “Bazar” on stage.
And then the film crew of the film “The Little Mermaid” by Dasha Charusha comes on stage. It was filmed for the cultural and charitable foundation ACTION by Svetlana Bondarchuk and Evgenia Popova. It lasts only 14 minutes. It is a variation on the theme of the famous fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen. The main roles were played by Natalia Pavlenkova, Maxim Stoyanov, Andrey Dvoskin, Svetlana Bondarchuk.
By the way, actress Natalia Pavlenkova shared: “I was born in Gorky and lived here for 18 years. I received an acting education at a theater school and even worked on this stage for a short time”…
So, Nizhny Novgorod has worthily confirmed its status as the cultural capital of 2024. “Gorky Fest” was a great success. Full houses at the screenings and meetings with the filmmakers, discussions. They say that the organizers made an agreement “with the heavenly office” or conjured up the weather. Otherwise, how can you explain a whole week of sunny days, no rain? Not a single disrupted open-air film screening!
Numbers
During the festival, 146 film screenings took place, “Gorky Fest” was visited by more than 100 thousand viewers. More than 22 districts of the region participated in the festival. About 60 sites in Nizhny Novgorod and districts of the region were involved.
Direct speech
Nikita Davydov, director of the film “Torbasa, or How we cut meat” (Yakutsk):
– Thanks to the jury, the organizers, the city and the wonderful audience. I was very surprised that so many people come to the screenings. I am a cook by profession. This film is my debut, a new area for me. My brother, director Dmitry Davydov, brought me to the cinema by the scruff of the neck, here he acted as a producer. I shot a short film, now I plan to take on a full-length one.
Source: rg.ru
