Russian Success at Cannes 2008
May 2008, Cannes, France
The 61st Cannes Film Festival proved successful indeed for Russian cinema!
It seems that for Russian cinema, good things come in threes: firstly, the Russian film industry was suitably showcased at the first ever Russian film pavilion in the ‘Village International’, overlooking the Mediterranean; next, leading Russian production and distribution companies presented some of their best creations at the International Marché du Film; and to top it all off, the real sensations of this year’s most prestigious European film festival were the stunning triumphs by Sergei Dvortsevoy and Valeria Gai-Germanika, both first time feature film directors!
Directors and Films:
Sergei Dvortsevoi, ‘Tulpan’
Winning the festival’s second most prestigious award, Un Certain Regard’, ‘Tulpan’ will now surely hold down a place of its own in cinematic history, approaching the success of ‘Cranes are Flying’, Mikhail Kalatozov’s seminal masterpiece, which this year celebrated 50 years since its 1958 ‘Palme d’Or’ triumph.
The film tells the story of young Asa who, after completing his naval service, travels back to his native Kazakh steppe to restart his life.
The critics, who where unanimously impressed by the work, recognised in ‘Tulpan’ a masterful combination of the genres of documentary and feature film. This will come as no surprise to those familiar with Dvortsevoy’s previous achievements as a documentary filmmaker: creations such as ‘Bread Day’, ‘Highway’ and ‘In the dark’ have already won him critical acclaim all over the world.
Valeria Gai-Germanika, 'All Will Die but Me'
Young, audacious and talented, Valeria is the true embodiment of new Russian cinema!
Her first feature film was awarded a Special prize at the International Critics’ Week, alongside such impressive main competition entries as Steve McQueen’s ‘Hunger’.
With the sardonically optimistic title, ‘All Will Die But Me’, it follows three teenage girls, breathless with anticipation when they learn on Monday that there will be a school disco the following Friday. This summary certainly does not do justice to the achievement of this genuinely innovative and insightful portrayal of blossoming femininity. However, those who have seen Valeria’s previous documentary films ( ‘Boys’ and ‘Girls’), which were selected for the 1st Russian Film Festival in 2007, will understand exactly why the 23-year old director deserves every bit of this international critical recognition.
Without blowing our own trumpet unduly, we are thrilled about the part Russian Film Festival 2007 played in drawing international attention to her truly distinctive cinematic talent!
It all suggests that it will be worth paying close attention to the official selection for the fast-approaching 2nd Russian Film Festival!
Video reportage: The Russians at Cannes
http://www.kinoros.ru/db/movies/609/video/1037/index.html?1212423723860
