Friday, 17/11/2000

Karen Shakhnazarov, the director and president of the Moscow based production company Mosfilm, described the term "new Russian cinema" as conventional. As he said, the program of the films being screened in the framework of the 41st Thessaloniki Film Festival's tribute contains films by the generation of directors born in the 50s' and molded in the Soviet era. He notes that the younger generation of Russian film makers has not been formed yet.

The films being screened by the 41st Festival would have probably never been created if it wasn't for the period of glasnost and perestroika, which played an important role in their creation. As he said, it was a vital program for the Soviet Union and received the support of the public as well as the film makers. He believes that the disappointment that followed perestroika was a natural reaction and that those notions are a part of the past, absent from the lives of modern day Russians, gone with Michail Gorbachev, and not present in today's discussions.

As far as the production of new films is concerned, the new era is actually more crucial since last year's production numbered only 60 films while the annual production 10 years ago consisted of 150-200 films. Mr. Shakhnazarov believes that this is mostly because of the reduction of the financial support that film makers previously received. Therefore, the crisis in Russian film production is realized as funds become increasingly difficult to come by. In Russia, as well as the rest of the world, the distribution of American films is prominent, which, according to Mr. Shakhnazarov, is a global problem. He notes, though, that the situation is gradually changing as more and more Russian films find their way to the cinemas.

In reply to a question by Fotos Lambrinos, he said that the films' topics are derived from the past, with a tendency of national self-consciousness, a powerful inclination, actually, that appears mainly in his generation of 40-year olds. Actually, he attributes this to the fact that Russians are just now starting to view themselves as Russians and not as Soviets. This, though, is a long term procedure that doesn't result in historical conflict but is rather a part of the people's history.

Andrei Zertsalov, the president of the Leningrad based production company Lenfilm, said that Russian cinemas are showing all 60 films of last year's production. He pointed out, though, that the problem is not in the films making it to the cinema, but their ability to cover their expenses and be profitable. As he said, the problem for directors used to be censorship.

Of the 60 films of last year's production, 12 of which were made at Lenfilm Studios, Moloch, by Aleksandr Sokurov won the award for best screenplay at the Cannes festival and is already in cinemas. The director is now shooting a new film about the last days of Vladimir Lenin at Gorky.