Two coproductions of Polish company Message Film will have their world premieres at the International Film Festival in Berlin. Russian/Polish/Serbian DOVLATOV by Russian director Alexey German Jr will be presented in the Competition. Ukrainian/Polish/Macedonian production WHEN THE TREES FALL by Marysia Nikitiuk, a debuting director and scriptwriter, will be premiered within the Panorama 2018 programme.
The Polish producers of both films are Dariusz Jabłoński, Izabela Wójcik and Violetta Kamińska, with many years’ experience in international projects: It’s a great joy for us to hear that this year Berlinale has appreciated two films coproduced by us. Both films were created out of passion for cinema and for discovering still new directions and personalities.
DOVLATOV is a continuation of our cooperation with one of the most outstanding Russian directors Alexey German Jr and a great friend producer, Artem Vasiliev. In 2015 "Under the Electric Clouds” received the Silver Bear at Berlinale for "Outstanding Artistic Achievements".
WHEN THE TREES FALL is a debut by Marysia Nikitiuk, a Ukrainian film director, scriptwriter and writer, who impressed us with her talent, charisma and energy from the very first meeting. Her imagination combined with the artistry of one of the best Polish cinematographers, Michał Englert, brought a truly magical effect.
DOVLATOV
premiere February 17th 2018
The film charts six days in the life of brilliant, ironic writer who saw far beyond the rigid limits of '70s Soviet Russia. Sergey Dovlatov and poet Joseph Brodsky, both of whom would emigrate to New York, fought to preserve his own talent and decency while watching their artist friends getting crushed by the iron-willed state machinery.
Alexey German Jr. returns to Berlin, where his previous film UNDER THE ELECTRIC CLOUDS won a Silver Bear in 2015. The son of maverick Russian director Alexey German, who battled the censors and prevailing notions of hero/anti-hero until his final masterpiece HARD TO BE GOD (2015), German Jr. made DOVLATOV partially as an homage to the '70s Leningrad intelligentsia of his father's generation. This loosely connected group of friends fought for creative freedom during Brezhnev's period of stagnation. German Jr. had already explored the stifling grip of Soviet culture in his third feature PAPER SOLDIER, which won a Silver Lion in Venice in 2008.
German Jr. leaves behind some of the more well-known actors he has been working with for a group of relatively unknowns, most notably the young Serbian actor Milan Marić, who does an excellent job of portraying the outsider status of the Jewish-Armenian Dovlatov, who encountered casual anti-semitism on a daily basis. Brodsky is played by the Russian actor Artur Beschastny, who already played the poet in the theater. In Russia, actor Danila Kozlovsky (David, artist-turned-black marketeer) is more established.
German Jr's approach is one of strong stylization, not quite the hyperrealism of his father and certainly not the typical bio pic genre. Having coached powerful performances from his actors, he has created a fictional world, amplified by stunning cinematography by Oscar nominated Łukasz Żal (IDA) and meticulous art direction by Yelena Okopnaya.
DOVLATOV - BERLINALE SCREENINGS:
17.02.2018 9:00 Berlinale Palast Press
17.02.2018 15:00 Berlinale Palast Gala Premiere
18.02.2018 9:30 Friedrichstadt-Palast
18.02.2018 17:55 CineStar 1 (Market Screening)
18.02.2018 21:30 Haus der Berliner Festspiele
18.02.2018 22:30 International
22.02.2018 11:45 CinemaxX 10
25.02.2018 17:15 Haus der Berliner Festspiel
WHEN THE TREES FALL
premiere February 20th, 2018
In a godforsaken village in Ukraine a rebellious little girl learns about life watching her teenage cousin’s romance with a young criminal. But when he flees after a murder, her cousin is forced to marry someone else, and this little heroine has to understand just how important it is to fight for your dreams.
WHEN THE TREES FALL aroused the interest of the international film community as early as the script stage, winning the 10th Krzysztof Kieślowski ScripTeast Award for the Best Script from Eastern Europe, presented at Cannes Film Festival 2016.
The camerawork was carried out by Michał Englert, rewarded at Berlin and Sundance festivals (BODY/CIAŁO), and Mateusz Wichłacz. The film was edited by the outstanding Polish editor Milenia Fiedler as well as Blaze Dulev (Macedonia) and Ivan Bannikov (Ukraine). The creative team also included the set designer Vlad Dudko (Ukraine); Tetyana Khoroshun and Tetyana Bovt (Ukraine) who were the make-up artists; the composer Mykyta Moiseiev (Ukraine) together with Aleksandre Pejovski (Macedonia); whereas the costume design was prepared by Kostyantyn Kravets (Ukraine).
WHEN THE TREES FALL - BERLINALE SCREENINGS:
20.02.2018 22:30 CinemaxX 7 (Premiere)
21.02.2018 17:45 CineStar 3
22.02.2018 22:30 Cubix 7
23.02.2018 20:00 CinemaxX 7
24.02.2018 14:00 International
* * *
DOVLATOV
Director: Alexey German Jr.
Writers: Alexey German Jr., Yulia Tupikina
Cinematography: Łukasz Żal
Editing: Sergey Ivanov, Darya Gladysheva
Set decoration: Elena Okopnaya
Costume design: Elena Okopnaya
Make up: Natalya Ratkevich
Sound design: Ivan Gusakov
Cast: Milan Marić, Danila Kozlovsky, Helena Sujecka, Artur Beschastny, Anton Shagin, Svetlana Khodchenkova, Elena Lyadova, Piotr Gąsowski, Eva Gerr
Producers: Dariusz Jabłoński, Izabela Wójcik, Violeta Kamińska, Miroslav Mogorovich, Rushan Nasibulin, Eduard Pichugin, Maxim Lojevsky
Production company: SAGaCo-production: METRAFILMS, Message Film, Art&Popcorn
Executive producer: Andrey Savelyev, Artyom Vasilev, Konstantin Ernst
Supported by: Polish Film Institue, Eurimages, Russian Federation Ministry of Culture, Russian Film Fund, Filmski Centar Srbije
World sales: Alpha Violet, http://www.alphaviolet.com
Festivals: Berlinale 2018 Competition, world premiere
WHEN THE TREES FALL
Written and directed by: Marysia Nikitiuk
Cinematography: Michał Englert, Mateusz Wichłacz
Music: Mykyt Moiseiev
Editing: Blaze Dulev, Milenia Fielder, Ivan Bannikov
Set decoration: Vlad Dudko
Costume design: Kostyantyn Kravets
Make up: Tetyana Khoroshun, Tetyana Bovt
Production manager: Dmytro Chervonyi
Cast: Anastasia Pustovit, Sonya Khalaimova, Maksym Samchyk, Maria Svizhinska, Petro Pastukhov, Mariia Trepikova, Yevgenii Grygoriev, Aelita-Viktoriia Avierman, Alla Samoylenko, Ivan Blindar
Producers: Igor Savychenko, Roman Klympush, Volodymyr Fillipov, Serge Lavrenyuk (Ukraine), Dariusz Jabłoński, Violetta Kamińska, Izabela Wójcik (Poland), Darko Basheski (Macedonia), Antonio Saura, Oscar Alonso, Juan Torres, Marta Hernando (Spain)
Production company: Directory Films
Co-production: Message Film, Latido Films, Fokus In, Solar Media
Co-financing: Ukrainian State Film Agency, Polish Film Institute, Macedonian Film Agency
World sales: http://www.latidofilms.comFestivals: Berlinale 2018 Panorama, world premiere
