Vladimir Hotinenko’s “Heirs” premiere

 On the 22nd of October in the cinema theatre “Kosmos” the director and the crew will present their new film dedicated to Sergiy Radonezhskiy. The “Leevandia Entertainment” company took on the role of co-partner and organizer. 

Moscow premiere will go with a participation of the director Vladimir Hotinenko and the leading actors Leonid Bichevin, Alexander Baluev, Anatoliy Beliy, Agrippina Steklova, Alexander Korotkov and other crew members. 

Cinema company “ROY” production drama was made with a financial support of the Russian Federation Ministry Of Culture and Cinema Fund.

First released on Moscow International Film Festival in 2015 the film has already taken part in the international festival “Family’s Circle”, “Baltic Pearl” in Riga and international tv-forum “Together” in Yalta, where it won grand-prize for the best script.

The majority of the film takes place in a talk-show studio where a political expert, patriot, pop-diva and other characters alongside with a host have been discussing the figure and legacy of  reverend Sergiy Radonezhskiy. In the middle of the show record the host suddenly gets known his show is cancelled. The host realizes he has nothing to lose and tries to “expose” church and power of his guests. But the effect turns out to be not the one he was expecting and we begin to see true Sergiy Radinezhskiy. And in some episodes we see the problems of modern Russia like in the mirror. 

Originally the film was planned for the 700th birthday anniversary of Sergiy Radonezhskiy and was called like that from the beginning. But the goal of making the film was not only to show the life of the saint but also to show how he still influences our life. That’s why the film was re-named on “Heirs”. 

The director Vladimir Hotinenko:

“I wanted the film to be about the influence of Sergiy Radonezhskiy on our modern Russia and not only to tell and to show his biography. Those who watched the film would learn a lot about Sergiy, but what is more important – would look at themselves in that difficult time for the country.”

Due to the valid subjects and questions and an unusual format of talk-show “Heirs” awaked an echo in audience’s heart. As the director confesses, to shoot the film in such a format would be much more difficult if he didn’t have an experience with a hosting such shows on the Culture channel. 

The director Vladimir Hotinenko: 

“The original script’s author is a young playwright Maria Kondratova. During the first rehearsals we were terrified as it was not interesting at all. When a talk-show is broadcasting it a live video and it is very hard to show the same emotions on the record. We’ve been searching for our unique style and the way of making interest from the characters. It is my 25th film. And which problems could I face, it seems. But no, it was the first time in my experience. In a way, I started to search for the ways of communication with the actors and my own style as if it were my first film.”

Journalists and critics also met the film with positive marks.

«The Hollywood Reporter»:

“Hotinenko, who is not only the director but also the scriptwriter of “Heirs” found a unique way of narration. How can you tell a story with so many gaps, contradictions, laxities and different interpretations of the same events? To hand it out to different tellers with different point of views and their own characteristic features: intelligent historian and politician, patriotic serviceman, pacifist doctor, priest and pop-diva…

The style side is magnificent: live arguing don’t look like babbling and beating the air. The events taking place behind the cameras make the plot going on smoothly for the audience. Here we see the help of the author’s experience of hosting a talk-show on the television. Covered intrigues as television’s weekdays, posh names of lightning schemes and background music, tyrannosaur on the back (a tomorrow’s show “The World Without People” stage property) – Hotinenko’s professional irony lives and prospers here.”

“New Sight”:

“We should do justice to the director – this, as critics call it – film adaptation of a newspaper lampoon is made quite entertaining, with a good humour and irony. It’s worth mentioning some of actors’s luck, too (Bichevin, Belov, Steklova) and some sort of post-modern impudence of Hotinenko. To show a rebuff of the idiot box through the idiot box, to put a mirror in front of the main character for laughing at him at the end – bravo, indeed!”

A close space and recognizable characters of this tragic comedy allow to see a character of our nowadays society. 

Paradoxes and difficulties of the state of Russia have always been the main subjects of Hotinenko’s works. But that film is the first time when the director makes a direct speech.

The director Vladimir Hotinenko:

“I’ve drawn a direct line from the 1380-ies to our days. Now we’re stuck in a difficult situation. One of the characters played by Alexander Baluev says: “It is not a coincidence we celebrate the 700th anniversary. It is a higher call.” We are not in a better situation than Rus was back there. Maybe it is a sign for us. Maybe we should find an anchor. Maybe we should send our prayings to Sergiy Radonezskiy for him to make us stronger.”

movie trailer:

The premiere of the film “Heirs” will take place on the 22nd of October at 19:00 in the “Kosmos” cinema theatre. 

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