The opening film was "The Chip Inside Me" directed by Yulia Kiseleva, a special guest was TV and radio presenter, eco-activist Tutta Larsen
II international film Festival "Shape of Life", dedicated to the preservation of the environment and all forms of life on the planet, was officially opened in Perm on Thursday, August 18. The ceremony took place in the Organ Concert Hall of the Perm Regional Philharmonic.
The special guest of the opening was the famous Russian TV and radio presenter, eco-activist Tutta Larsen. On this day as part of the festival she held Public talk "Conscious choice – an ecological lifestyle".
"I'm just happy that documentaries are becoming a serious festival trend. I really like documentaries. Therefore, the “Shape of Life" festival is an incredible wonderful event for me, which allows Russian and international documentary films to come to the audience and stand in a worthy row of what inspires and leads us. This is a festival about ecology in the broadest sense – about what is happening in our soul, in our relationship with ourselves and with the world," Tutta Larsen said.
The II International Film Festival "Shape of Life" was opened by Maria Bezenkova, Program Director, head of the festival promotion of the Gorky Film Studio, Anastasia Rycina, head of the Documentary Film Department of the Gorky Film Studio, and Alyona Semerikova–Volkova, Director of the ANO "Center for the Development of Film Production" of the Perm Film Commission.
"I am very happy to collect the program for the second time and present it to the Perm audience and the audience of the Perm Region. It seems to me that this year the program of the second international festival turned out to be very spectator. We invite everyone to the screenings," Maria Bezenkova said.
The ceremony was attended by members of the jury of the international program: the chairman of the jury – producer, screenwriter, director Sveta Vlastimir Strahinic (Serbia), film director, film researcher Sharofat Arabova, neurologist, scientific expert, popularizer of science Anton Lukashevich.
This year, nine feature films from eight countries are taking part in the international competition: Russia, Israel, China, Canada, USA, Serbia, Kazakhstan and Switzerland. All of them were created in 2020-2022 and correspond to the main goals and objectives of the film festival.
The national competition of eight films was presented by the members of the jury: the chairman of the national jury – a teacher of the Department of Cinematography, director, screenwriter Sergey Karandashov, film critic, selector of the film festival "Kinoshok"Sergey Anashkin, director, artistic director of the East Siberian Cinematography Support Fund "Matera" Yulia Byvsheva.
Soloists of the Perm Regional Philharmonic Vasily Egovtsev and Gulnaz Garipova performed "Storm" from Antonio Vivaldi's cycle "Seasons". The song "There is only a moment" (music by Alexander Zatsepin, words by Leonid Derbenev) was performed by the art group "Chorus Quartet".
The film "The Chip inside Me" was shown at the opening directed by Yulia Kiseleva – five stories of people with chips in their heads. There are many myths and fears around "chipping", but for many these chips are a vital necessity. With the help of implants, doctors restore hearing to the deaf, remove tremor in patients with Parkinson's syndrome, stop epilepsy attacks and treat dystonia. In the film, world-renowned scientists talk about technophobia and scientific discoveries of recent years.
The festival is organized by the Gorky Film Studio with the support of the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation, the Ministry of Culture of the Perm Region, the Perm Regional Philharmonic and the Perm Cinematheque.
Free screenings of documentaries of competitive and non-competitive programs, open discussions of paintings, meetings and master classes are held at the Triumph Philharmonic Hall, the Premier Cinema and social cinemas of the Perm Region and other venues from August 17 to 21.
The closing of the II IFF "Form of Life" will take place in the Organ Concert Hall of the Perm Regional Philharmonic on August 21. The closing film will be the movie "Atlantida" directed by Yuri Ankarani – about a young guy from an island on the edge of the Venetian Lagoon. He is trying to create the fastest boat in the lagoon, but his actions only lead to more destruction of the environment. The movie was shown at one of the most prestigious forums of world art – the Venice Biennale.
Information partners of the festival: Cinema Art, Around the World, Culture, +1 (Plus One), Gorod, Dom.ru, RBC Perm.