IN BRIEF

Published: November 7, 2012 (Issue # 1734)

Sokurov Walks Out

ST. PETERSBURG (SPT) — Award-winning Russian film director Alexander Sokurov has made the decision to leave the board of directors at St. Petersburg’s Lenfilm film studio, Interfax said last week.

Sokurov wrote a letter about his decision to Russian Culture minister Vladimir Medinsky.

“I wrote that letter because I believe that my presence on the board of directors is a formality. My opinions on the development of the studio went unheard,” Sokurov said.

On Oct. 15 the Russian Property Ministry announced that Russian film director Fyodor Bondarchuk had been appointed chairman of the board.

Bondarchuk said he would not allow anyone “to oust” Sokurov from Lenfilm and that he would be ready to cooperate with the film directory “on a separate program.”

Bondarchuk said he believed that Sokurov’s statement about the impossibility of working at Lenfilm was an emotional response.

“If it is unacceptable for Alexander Nikolayevich (Sokurov) to communicate with some film directors we shall work with him on an individual program,” Bondarchuk said.

However, Bondarchuk said he was not ready to meet all of Sokurov’s demands.

Fired For Drug Use

ST. PETERSBURG (SPT) — About 100 St. Petersburg policemen have been dismissed from their posts for drug use, head of St. Petersburg and Leningrad Oblast police Sergei Umnov said last week, Interfax reported.

Umnov said the drug users had been uncovered during some routine inspections.

List of Shame

ST. PETERSBURG (SPT) — The Russian Education and Science Ministry has published a list of universities in the country that have been found to be operating ineffectively.

The list of ineffective institutions in St. Petersburg includes the State Polar Academy, St. Petersburg State Theater Art Academy, St. Petersburg State Cinema and Television University, St. Petersburg State University of Culture and Art and six more higher education institutions, Interfax said.

In Moscow, 20 institutions appeared on the list.

Kids in America

ST. PETERSBURG (SPT) — During the past 20 years, Americans have adopted 60,000 children from Russia, the press service of the US Embassy in Russia said last week.

The press service published the statistics to coincide with the agreement between Russia and the US on adoption, which came into effect Nov. 1, Interfax reported.

“The agreement guarantees that the adoption of children between Russia and the US will continue successfully and the well-being of the adopted children will be secured,” the message said.