Summary

TAPE: EF02/0437 IN_TIME: 14:15:25 / 10:57:44 DURATION: 3:44 SOURCES: APTN RESTRICTIONS: No re-use/re-sale of film/video/tv clips without clearance DATELINE: 23rd May 2002, Cannes SHOTLIST: 1. Film Clip - 'Russian Ark' 2. SOT Alexandre Sokourov - (Russian) - "I wished to transmit one of my feelings, not some thoughts or ideas but a feeling that I had." 3. Film Clip - 'Russian Ark' 4. SOT Alexandre Sokourov - (Russian) - "There were two main problems, the first was the problem of choosing a cameraman because we needed for this film an experienced steadicam operator but steadicam operators are not people that have any special experience in artistic work and artistic tasks so the operator was not fully able to achieve the results that we hoped for. The second problem is the organisation or the logistical problem to put together lots of components, to put them all together and to make the whole thing work." 5. Film Clip - 'Russian Ark' 6. SOT Alexandre Sokourov - (Russian) - "From the very beginning we knew that we were going to make a single shot movie. The preparations took 8 months and the shooting exactly 1 hour and a half of the 23rd of December last year." 7. Film Clip - 'Russian Ark' STORYLINE: 'RUSSIAN ARK' WRAPS IN ONE TAKE Russian director Alexandre Sokourov has taken his single shot movie 'Russian Ark' to the Cannes Film Festival. The entire film is shot on steadicam in real time - after 8 months of preparation. The plot follows a modern day filmmaker who magically finds himself invisible, and in St Petersberg in the early 1700s. He meets a cynical 19th century French diplomat, and the two become time travelling partners through Russia's turbulent past, finishing in the present day. The pair see astonishing scenes from the Tsarist Empire in the splendid corridors of the Palace - Peter the Great whipping his general, Catherine the Great rushing around in search of a place to relieve herself, and the family of the last Tsar eating together totally unaware of the coming revolution. They also witness hundreds of dancers enjoying the last great Royal Ball of 1913, as an era draws to a close. The two men argue their way through their time-voyage. One has a Western love-hate relationship with Russia, whereas the other - the filmmaker - questions his country's uneasy connection to its past and to Europe today. Sokourov explains the challenges of creating his uncut vision: "There were two main problems, the first was the problem of choosing a cameraman because we needed for this film an experienced steadicam operator but steadicam operators are not people that have any special experience in artistic work and artistic tasks so the operator was not fully able to achieve the results that we hoped for. The second problem is the organisation or the logistical problem to put together lots of components, to put them all together and to make the whole thing work." CLEARANCE DETAILS: Russian Ark Celluloid Dreams 33 (0) 1 49 70 30 70