Trifon Bebutov

The ceremony was hosted by actors Tina Stoyilkovich and Fyodor Fedotov. The central idea of the event was a dialogue between the artist and cinema – from the bold avant-garde ideas of the early last century to contemporary creative experiments of aspiring directors. During the ceremony, the hosts quoted Kazimir Malevich, Dziga Vertov, Vsevolod Meyerhold, Lev Kuleshov, Vladimir Mayakovsky, and Alexander Rodchenko, recalling a time when cinema was just emerging as an art form that united technology, light, movement, and human experience.

The evening’s musical arrangement was provided by Iskander Khannanov and the chamber ensemble “Ensemble.” The visual concept, permeating both the ceremony and the entire festival, was created by artist and designer Konstantin Chirkov. The symbols included an arrow—a sign of movement, development, and support—and the image of a man with balloons—a metaphor for the creator whose ideas gain strength through the festival. This motif was also reflected on stage: general producers Maxim Korolev and Artem Mikhalkov appeared before the audience holding bundles of balloons.

Artem Mikhalkov noted that the festival is growing: more and more films and new names are appearing, and Veliky Novgorod is becoming a magnet for filmmakers. Maxim Korolev introduced the new program director, Trifon Bebutov, and thanked the Ministry of Culture (in particular, Olga Lyubimova), as well as the Novgorod Region and its governor, Alexander Dronov, for their assistance in organizing it.

Following tradition, the organizers presented the prize for “Best Young Producer in Russia.” This year, the laureate was Katerina Mikhailova. In her speech, she noted the multifaceted role of the producer in the film industry and expressed gratitude to the authors with whom she had the opportunity to work.

A real surprise for the guests was the performance of the directors of the competition program. On the eve of the opening, each of them answered a series of questions: they formulated their vision of the theme “The Artist and Cinema,” named their idol in directing, their favorite film, their favorite artist, and their main work of art, spoke about the source of inspiration, personal achievements, and which time—past, present, or future—finds them most attractive. These mini-stories allowed the audience to see in the contestants not just directors, but original creators with a unique artistic vision.

The main competition program includes nine films:

• “Wind in the Head” (directed by Arseniy Moskovsky);
• “Where are you?” (dir. Veronika Korzhevskaya);
• “D-76” (dir. Alexey Zhitkovsky);
• “Zhuzha” (dir. Yulia Anishchenko);
• “My Own Bed Is Devouring Me” (dir. Vyacheslav Ivanov);
• “Not Gold” (dir. Takhmina Musset);
• “Surf Animal” (dir. Andrey Burmistrov);
• “The Sea-Sea Highway” (dir. Ilya Temples);
• “Someone Else’s Call” (directed by Svetlana Belkina).

The jury is headed by producer Maxim Dobromyslov. Together with him, the works will be evaluated by cameraman Vsevolod Kaptur, director and screenwriter Ivan Sosnin, actor Rinal Mukhametov and actress Anastasia Krasovskaya. Maxim Dobromyslov expressed confidence that the competition program will be interesting, and read Vladimir Mayakovsky’s poem “Could You?” from the stage.

The winners will be awarded in several nominations: main prize, best direction, best male and female roles, best visual solution. The winner of the main prize will receive a prize of 1,000,000 rubles from the organizing committee. In addition, special prizes from partners are provided. For example, the distribution company “Vereteno” will provide one of the films with premiere screenings and distribution support, and VKontakte will help the winner promote the film.

The opening ended with a musical number: the “Ensemble” performed works by Dmitri Shostakovich and Sergei Kuryokhin – iconic figures of the musical avant-garde.

The opening film was Viktor Shamirov’s “Temperature of the Universe” – a story about the life of scientists in an astronomers’ settlement. The film was inspired by the director’s trip to the scientific settlement and was previously awarded an award in the “Russian Premieres” competition at the 48th Moscow International Film Festival. Viktor Shamirov described his work as “slow, calm, quiet cinema,” and emphasized that the main value of the festival is the opportunity to communicate with intelligent people.

The festival will run until June 1. Guests can expect a rich business program dedicated to current issues and prospects of the film industry. For the second time, the Art Nouveau Film Market will be held: young directors and producers will present their projects to distributors, platforms, festival selectors, and potential partners.

This year, special attention is paid to education: for the first time, an applied block will be implemented, aimed not only at training, but also at real interaction with the industry. Out-of-competition programs and special screenings will offer viewers auteur films, vibrant short films, and family films. The festival will feature the “Cinema from All Over Russia” program, dedicated to the Year of Unity of the Peoples of Russia, declared by President Vladimir Putin. Another highlight of the festival will be the contemporary art exhibition “Heritage of the Avant-Garde.” It will demonstrate how contemporary authors are rethinking the ideas of Russian avant-garde.