Festival of Festivals Brings Indian Touch to City's Screens

By Alec Luhn

The St. Petersburg Times

Published: June 26, 2009 (Issue # 1486)

For The St. Petersburg Times A scene from Indian director Madhur Bhandarkar’s film ‘Fashion’ which follows the competitive fashion industry and will be shown as part of the festival.

The Festival of Festivals, as the St. Petersburg International Film Festival is known, opened earlier this week, bringing together old and new in a cinematic combination that will entertain film fans through Sunday.

The harmony of past and present was exemplified at Tuesday’s opening ceremony, which began with a Charlie Chaplin silent film, continued with Gene Kelly in the title scene from the 1952 musical “Singin’ in the Rain” (set during Hollywood’s transition from silent films to sound), and concluded with French director Fran?ois Ozon’s new, dramatic attempt at magical realism, “Ricky.”

Asked what’s new about the 17th annual Festival of Festivals, director Alexander Mamontov glibly replied, “100 new films.” But he also admitted that besides its usual 100 to 120 cutting-edge films, this year’s festival includes a unique retrospective program of foreign cinema. Whereas last year’s event featured a retrospective of Irish films, the latest incarnation showcases past highlights of Czech, Montenegrin and, for the first time in the festival’s history, Indian cinema.

In addition to the retrospectives, the film fest includes new movies from around the world within the smaller programs “Festival of Israeli Cinema,” “Day of Norwegian Cinema,” “St. Petersburg – Hamburg: Sister Cities” and “A Week of French Cinema,” which counts “Ricky” among its number.

Organizers of the Festival of Festivals typically draw up a roster of prize-winning films from other international film fests, such as the Cannes Film Festival and the Moscow International Film Festival. With few exceptions, all films at the St. Petersburg event have participated in well-known festivals.

“The main goal is to show good pictures, the best of European cinema,” Mamontov said.

“The concept is that we take prize-winning films and introduce them to the St. Petersburg audience,” he added.

The Festival of Festivals will itself award further decorations, including prizes for best debut film, best actor/actress/director, best staging of a literary work, and best film, as determined by the ratings of viewers and participants in the festival.

Despite the gathering’s traditionally European focus, the main theme of this year’s event is Indian cinema, with the retrospective of Indian movies timed to coincide with the Year of India in Russia, Mamontov said.

In another example of old-meets-new, Indian Consul General in St. Petersburg Radhika Lokesh noted in her introductory comments Tuesday that the program of Indian film reflects the current importance of Bollywood, the largest film industry in the world, while also continuing a tradition of Indian cinema in Russia that dates to Soviet times.

The five Indian films on the schedule, which include the 2007 drama “Stars on Earth,” directed by and starring Bollywood favorite Aamir Khan, are meant to show a “kaleidoscopic view of India and what it means today,” said Lokesh.

The Indian film director Madhur Bhandarkar, whose latest film “Fashion” shows at Dom Kino on Friday, was in town this week to take part in the festival. In an interview with The St. Petersburg Times on Wednesday, Bhandarkar, whose films have all won awards in India and include “Chandny Bar,” “Page 3” and “Corporate,” said he hoped “Fashion” would be as successful in St. Petersburg as it was when it was shown in Moscow recently.

“The film played to a packed house and got a standing ovation,” he said. “I’m sure people here will like the film too, because it’s about the fashion industry and the modeling world in India, how the models struggle to survive, and the competition among the girls. People all over the world have loved it, and I’m sure St. Petersburg will be no exception.”

Bhandarkar is known for his gritty, realistic films. “My films all have social elements,” he said. “They’re all very real, they’re about human emotions.”

For the director, the Festival of Festivals was a chance to fulfill a childhood dream. “It has been my dream to come to St. Petersburg ever since I was a child,” he said. “I’m very happy and proud that I’m here. I love the people — they’re so hospitable,” he said.

Of course, the Festival of Festivals wouldn’t deserve such a title without the best and brightest of Russian cinema, and the 2009 event features a program of eight Russian films produced in 2008 to 2009. This grouping includes renowned Russian director Alexander Proshkin’s son, Andrei, and his 2009 sport drama “Minnesota,” which tells the story of a hockey player from a provincial Russian town who is invited to play in the U.S. state of Minnesota.

Mamontov said that in terms of Russian themes in this year’s festival, he expects the most out of a Czech/Polish production of “The Brothers Karamazov” — director Petr Zelenka’s “The Karamozovs.”

“It’s based on a novel by Dostoevsky, so the subject matter will be well-known to Petersburgers … for St. Petersburg, it’s a theme that’s close to the heart,” Mamontov said. Dostoevsky spent much of his adult life in St. Petersburg and set many of his works, including “Crime and Punishment,” in the city.

To complete its already eclectic cast of films, the festival also comprises a competition for short films by new directors, a sampling of notable children’s cinema and a showcase of German director Alexander Kluge’s body of work.

Although the organizers have not developed any concrete plans for next year’s festival, Mamontov does not doubt that the festival will continue to move beyond its initially humble beginnings in 1993, when it was started as an alternative to American film-festival rejects that were being shown in Russian movie theaters at the time.

“Americans were selling us fifth-grade films to show in theaters,” Mamontov explained. “We wanted to show better European cinema.”

***The International Film Festival of St. Petersburg runs through Monday at Dom Kino, Rodina cinema, the Sergei Kuryokhin Modern Art Center, and the Kaskad Cultural Center in Petrodvorets. Festival news and schedule can be found at filmfest.ru.

Organizers of the Festival of Festivals typically draw up a roster of prize-winning films from other international film fests, such as the Cannes Film Festival and the Moscow International Film Festival. With few exceptions, all films at the St. Petersburg event have participated in well-known festivals.

“The main goal is to show good pictures, the best of European cinema,” Mamontov said.

“The concept is that we take prize-winning films and introduce them to the St. Petersburg audience,” he added.

The Festival of Festivals will itself award further decorations, including prizes for best debut film, best actor/actress/director, best staging of a literary work, and best film, as determined by the ratings of viewers and participants in the festival.

Despite the gathering’s traditionally European focus, the main theme of this year’s event is Indian cinema, with the retrospective of Indian movies timed to coincide with the Year of India in Russia, Mamontov said.

In another example of old-meets-new, Indian Consul General in St. Petersburg Radhika Lokesh noted in her introductory comments Tuesday that the program of Indian film reflects the current importance of Bollywood, the largest film industry in the world, while also continuing a tradition of Indian cinema in Russia that dates to Soviet times.

The five Indian films on the schedule, which include the 2007 drama “Stars on Earth,” directed by and starring Bollywood favorite Aamir Khan, are meant to show a “kaleidoscopic view of India and what it means today,” said Lokesh.

The Indian film director Madhur Bhandarkar, whose latest film “Fashion” shows at Dom Kino on Friday, was in town this week to take part in the festival. In an interview with The St. Petersburg Times on Wednesday, Bhandarkar, whose films have all won awards in India and include “Chandny Bar,” “Page 3” and “Corporate,” said he hoped “Fashion” would be as successful in St. Petersburg as it was when it was shown in Moscow recently.

“The film played to a packed house and got a standing ovation,” he said. “I’m sure people here will like the film too, because it’s about the fashion industry and the modeling world in India, how the models struggle to survive, and the competition among the girls. People all over the world have loved it, and I’m sure St. Petersburg will be no exception.”

Bhandarkar is known for his gritty, realistic films. “My films all have social elements,” he said. “They’re all very real, they’re about human emotions.”

For the director, the Festival of Festivals was a chance to fulfill a childhood dream. “It has been my dream to come to St. Petersburg ever since I was a child,” he said. “I’m very happy and proud that I’m here. I love the people — they’re so hospitable,” he said.

Of course, the Festival of Festivals wouldn’t deserve such a lofty title without the best and brightest of Russian cinema, and the 2009 event features a program of eight Russian films produced in 2008 to 2009. This grouping includes renowned Russian director Alexander Proshkin’s son, Andrei, and his 2009 sport drama “Minnesota,” which tells the story of a hockey player from a provincial Russian town who is invited to play in the U.S. state of Minnesota.

Mamontov said that in terms of Russian themes in this year’s festival, he expects the most out of a Czech/Polish production of “The Brothers Karamazov” — director Petr Zelenka’s “The Karamozovs.”

“It’s based on a novel by Dostoevsky, so the subject matter will be well-known to Petersburgers … for St. Petersburg, it’s a theme that’s close to the heart,” Mamontov said. Dostoevsky spent much of his adult life in St. Petersburg and set many of his works, including “Crime and Punishment,” in the city.

To complete its already eclectic cast of films, the festival also comprises a competition for short films by new directors, a sampling of notable children’s cinema and a showcase of German director Alexander Kluge’s body of work.

Although the organizers have not developed any concrete plans for next year’s festival, Mamontov does not doubt that the festival will continue to move beyond its initially humble beginnings in 1993, when it was started as an alternative to American film-festival rejects that were being shown in Russian movie theaters at the time.

“Americans were selling us fifth-grade films to show in theaters,” Mamontov explained. “We wanted to show better European cinema.”

The Festival of Festivals runs through Monday at Dom Kino, Rodina cinema, the Sergei Kuryokhin Modern Art Center and the Kaskad Cultural Center in Petrodvorets. For full schedules and information about the films, visit www.filmfest.ru.