Rendering №9

The article published on the website of the radio The Voice of Russia on January 15, 2013 is headlined “Debuts and premieres of Kustendorf”. The article reports at length that world-famous Serbian film director Emir Kusturica has again invited film-makers and musicians from many countries to his Kustendorf International Film and Music Festival due to be held between the 16th and the 22nd of January. Speaking of Kustendorf it is necessary to note that the site of the festival is the ethnic village of Drvengrad specially constructed by Kusturica for this purpose. Besides, it is necessary to point out that Russian film-makers have also been invited.

It’s an open secret that the festival is well-known for its informal atmosphere. Emir Kusturica likes to invite both talented youths and world music and film stars to give them an opportunity to talk to each other. He calls Drvengrad ‘creative space’. In this connection it is worthwhile mentioning the fact that it often happens that even student work is shown in Kustendorf which gives the young a chance to be noticed, for example, in 2011 Russian actress and director Sonia Karpunina was awarded the festival’s main prize, the Golden Egg, for her short film The Chance, and this year 27-year-old Sonia is Kusturica’s guest for the third time with her new full-length comedy Everything Is Easy.

It was revealed that this year’s Kustendorf festival will show two more Russian films made by Karpunina’s age-mates: Konstantin Smirnov who has made a film showing how people become football hooligans, and Denis Klebleyev’s film about truck drivers who deliver food for the residents of remote villages of the Kamchatka Peninsula in the Russian Far East.

In resolute terms the author makes it clear that Kusturica’s special attitude to Russia is common knowledge. It’s an open secret that he visits Russia almost every year. In this connection it is worthwhile mentioning that this year he invited Alexei Balabanov with his film Me Too to Kustendorf where Balabanov is considered the best film director. Speaking of this film it is interesting to note that Alexei Balabanov says that the film was meant to be made without professional actors from the very start. The people you see in the film are real people and 80% of the plot are true stories. There is no drama acting in the film, the people play themselves.

All in all, the article concludes by saying that both Balabanov and Kusturica’s message is to make films for the audience and not for the box-office. As for me, I think it is wonderful when there are such festivals like Kustendorf which gave an opportunity for young people to show their talents and creativity in making films and music. Moreover, it is for those young people who “believe film is not just a vulgar commercial expression, but the art that Fellini and Tarkovsky talked about, and in which Miloš Forman was one of the greats”. And that’s great.