Rai
Russia, Germany
Synopsis
Shipped to a concentration camp, Olga is forced into a life of hell. To her surprise, she crosses paths with high-ranking German SS officer Helmut, who once fell madly in love with her and still harbours feelings. They re-kindle their old flame and embark on a twisted and destructive relationship. Helmut resolves to rescue Olga and offers her an escape that she no longer thought possible. Yet as time passes, and the fate of Nazi defeat looms, Olga's notion of Paradise is irrevocably changed.
Director's Biography
His subsequent films include The Story of Asya Klyachina, which was held back from release until 1988 because of government censorship, and received the Russian academy award for best picture, A Nest of Gentry, Romance for Lovers, and Sibiriade, a realistic portrayal of the lives of the people of Siberia which earned international acclaim and brought him to the attention of American and European producers. This led him to such mainstream Hollywood projects as Tango & Cash and Homer & Eddie. For the stage, Konchalovsky has directed numerous opera and theatrical production across Europe and the US, including “King Lear” in Poland, “Miss Julie” and Chekhov’s “The Seagull” in Russia, “War and Peace” at the Metropolitan Opera in New York, and “Queen of Spades” and “Eugene Onegin” at La Scala in Italy, the latter which was also staged in Paris. Early in his career he used a double surname and was credited as Mikhalkov-Konchalovsky. Later he adopted his mother's maiden name to distinguish himself from his younger brother, Nikita Mikhalkov, himself an accomplished director. Indeed, his entire family is artistic: his great-grandfather, grandfather and mother are celebrated poets, and his father is a noted playwright.
2010 marked the release of Andrei Konchalovsky’s much-anticipated cinematic adaptation of the traditional fairytale, The Nutcracker in 3D. This musical CGI-spectacular featured Elle Fanning in the role of little Mary, as well as Nathan Lane, Richard E Grant and John Turturro in the principal roles. Lyrics were provided by Academy Award® winner Sir Tim Rice. In the same year, Konchalovsky also featured in, Hitler in Hollywood, a bio-doc about Micheline Presle which evolves into a thrilling investigation of the long hidden truth behind European cinema. This mockumentary thriller uncovers Hollywood's unsuspected plot against the European motion picture industry. The film won the FIPRESCI Prize at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival and picked up a Crystal Globe nomination in July, 2010.
In 2012, Konchalovsky wrote, directed and produced Battle for Ukraine, which provided an in depth analysis of how Ukraine to this day struggles to escape from the close embrace of its former big brother, Russia. This extensive study lasted for almost three years and involved an array of Ukrainian, Russian and American historians, politicians and journalists, as well as the ex-President of Poland Aleksander Kwasniewski, the ex-President of Slovakia Rudolf Schuster, the ex-President of Georgia Eduard Shevardnadze, the seventh Secretary-General of the United Nations Kofi Annan, the ex-Prime Minister of Russia Viktor Chernomyrdin, and the businessman Boris Berezovsky.
2013, saw Konchalovsky co-produce a story previously untold on film. Film-maker Margy Kinmonth invited HRH The Prince of Wales to make a journey through history to celebrate the artistic gene in his family and reveal an extraordinary treasure trove of work by royal hands past and present, many of whom were accomplished artists. Set against the spectacular landscapes of the Royal Estates and containing insights into works by members of The Royal Family down the centuries and The Prince of Wales's own watercolours, Royal Paintbox explores a colourful palette of intimate family memory and observation.
The Postman’s White Nights is Konchalovsky’s latest achievement, winning the coveted Silver Lion for Best Director at the Venice International Film Festival in 2014. The film is based on the true story of Aleksey Tryaptisyn, a real life postman based in a remote Russian village surrounding the Kenozero lake. Irina Ermolova stars as Irina, the postman’s beloved, with Timur Bondarenko, of the Moscow Theatre studio starring as her son, Timur (Timka.)
Cast & Crew
Directed by: Andrei Konchalovsky
Written by: Andrei Konchalovsky, Elena Kiseleva
Produced by: Andrei Konchalovsky
Cinematography: Alexander Simonov
Editing: Ekaterina Vesheva
Production Design: Irina Ochina, Josef Sanktjohanser
Costume Design: Dmitry Andreev, Vladimir Nikiforov
Make-Up & Hair: Galina Ponomareva, Elena Dmitrienko
Original Score: Sergey Shustitsky
Sound Design: Maxim Belovolov
Cast: Julia Vysotskaya (Olga), Christian Clauss (Khelmut), Philippe Duquesne (Zhyul), Victor Sukhorukov (Heinrich Himmler), Peter Kurth (Krauze), Jakob Diehl (Fogel), Vera Voronkova (Roza)
Nominations and Awards
- Feature Film Selection 2017