“Zema” was originally a sketch project called “Beauty and the Beast”, which grew into a successful full-fledged series. How was it established, where did the funding come from?
Semyon Molokanov: We are all from KVN and at the beginning we were not some seasoned creators with a lot of projects behind them. We did something close to the cinema for television, but we did not have a big project.
But KVN people always have a desire to create something, try something new. And when we decided to launch something of our own in 2016, we honestly wouldn’t have thought we’d get the result we’ve achieved with Zema.
We had neither a business plan nor a strategy. In fact, we learned the basics of dramaturgy, developed our skills and grasped the craft of writing scripts from season to season. We just did it from the heart: obviously somewhere, even in a stereotypical place. But it turns out that this has its own audience, there are many of them – and this is not limited to the central cities. The story responded and appealed to a variety of people.
Anton Karpushkin: Semyon has a more creative role in our team and for me he is a managerial role. I have to get everyone together, organize everything and make sure everything is done right. As for the “Zema” launch: Semyon was very excited about the project and one day he called me and said we were going to shoot the drama. I supported his idea, and then the funding process began. A million was needed from the very beginning – it’s just an initial amount that we just don’t have. As a result, we had a meeting with some businessmen (I knew someone, someone knew Semyon), we outlined our plan to them, and we managed to persuade them to lend us this money.
— What do you think helped turn the initial little story into a full-fledged epic?
Karpushkin: I wouldn’t say ignorance is power, but sometimes ignorance of the challenges ahead and a lighter attitude at work really helps. It envelops you. You are not so afraid of difficulties and are ready to go to your goal. Perseverance and work grind everything – that’s right. Well, we’ve kept our intimacy, we’re all the same romantics doing what they love (smiling).
– Assuming that the key to a project’s success is its resonance with the audience and their will, then what is characteristic of the tonality of “Zema”?
Molokanov: It seemed to us that perhaps at some point people got tired of the projects of a standard painting, editing and big metropolitan productions. We came forward very strongly against their background and it worked. Since Beauty and the Beast was originally uploaded to YouTube, we’re open to viewers. We call these “pocket friends”: they always took out their phones, downloaded and watched videos.
There is also a feeling that people want to associate themselves with the heroes of their favorite projects, but there are stories and heroes that seem out of reach. And with “Zema” this distance between the author and the audience is greatly reduced.
Karpushkin: There is sincerity, honesty and decency in this work that we carry every season. I agree with Semyon, the main message of Zema as well as all our production is the same as you. There is no difference between us.
– The first season of the series was more of a funny love story, while the second and third seasons expanded the universe of the project and turned it into a dramatic family epic. How did the story evolve from the author’s position – and why did the humor give way to the drama?
Molokanov: Yes, we are just starting to grow up, it seems to me. There are things that are difficult to uncover through comedy alone, and then dramaturgy comes to the rescue.smiling). We’ve just begun to try ourselves in different ways, and to be honest, we can admit that something didn’t work out for us, but something we accomplished. At some point, other cavalry, more experienced men approached us, who wanted to work with us and help us in some way. And so the development took place – it was the most natural process: we developed and the project developed with us.
Karpushkin: I will add that comedy in its purest form has never been interesting to us. In any comic turn of the plot, we always tried to come up with a serious and socially significant idea. This is a movie about life.
What is the most unusual or memorable feedback you have received from viewers?
Molokanov: At first people wanted to come and take a picture with me and then they started to hug me (laughing). It seems to me that this is a nice and noticeable dynamic in the audience response (smiling). Traditionally you don’t run to Burunov and Nagiyev but they run to us as locals which is very nice for us. This is where chemistry was born.
– Joke question: The name of the project was originally “Beauty and the Beast”, referring to the Disney fairy tale. What other Disney fairy tale could be reimagined in the style of your show?
Karpushkin: If we consider a Disney fairy tale, it will be possible to successfully rethink “Aladdin” in our own way (smiling). Hero Tyapa…
Molokanov: this carpetlaughing).
Karpushkin: Almost (laughing). No, I meant monkey. Maxim Nazarov, Gin, Chest – there was always a parrot who was not happy with something. Sema is Aladdin and Mila is the same Princess Yasemin.
— How did the humorous audio inserts from the Courage-Bambay studio appear on the show?
Molokanov: When we edited the listing, I thought it would be great to add some funny off-screen text – and the first thing that came to mind was, of course, the Courage-Bambay style, voiced by their founder, Denis Kolesnikov. Denis has been at the top for a very long time, loved and recognized by the audience. He also sang “How I Met Your Mother”, “The Big Bang Theory” and many more.
Karpushkin: But the history of our cooperation with Denis is interesting. We found their link with some workarounds. They contacted him, offered to join, and he … refused (smiling). There were some nuances: both the contracts that should not be violated, and the fact that until then he did not know us and did not understand the concept of the project. By the way, we’ve never signed such a large number of documents that guarantee that his voice will not be used anywhere, except for the intro discussed. Plus, we decided at first that we would only show him the first episode. But this is understandable reinsurance – Denis has been in this business for a long time and all these conditions are really important.
Molokanov: In conclusion, we are very grateful to him, because Denis played an important role in the formation of not only Zema, but the entire Penzfilmmash. And now it is impossible to imagine the “Earth” without his participation.
Karpushkin: Definitely. Moreover, after years of cooperation, I believe that these are not only professional but also friendly relations that we value very much.
— Tell us about Penzfilmmash, an original local production that little is known about.
Karpushkin: The goals of our company are very ambitious – we want to be one of the best production companies in Russia, which will produce high-quality content for the entire Russian-speaking population of the world. This may be global and even naive, but I’m sure we’ll get to that one day (smiling).
We started with a very small team, we could literally be counted on the fingers of one hand. Currently there are about 100 people on the team and this number continues to increase. Separately, I note that in our state there are people not only from Penza, but also from Moscow and other parts of the country.
We are involved in various projects and want to occupy these niches in our filmmaking that have not yet been occupied by other companies. We want to work with both TV channels and streaming platforms – we have no restrictions in that sense. Simply put, we should be wherever people can see us.
Molokanov: Yes, for example we currently have 25 projects for large venues that are in various stages of production.
— Speaking of the Penzfilmmash example, do you think local productions have a chance to repeat their fate?
Karpushkin: I am personally convinced that the power is in the regions. You have no idea how many talented people there are in the regions.
Molokanov: Yes, but they are simply confused, because they do not see clear examples of how and where they can act before their eyes, they simply do not develop in the capital. They want to improve, but there is no place and time, because in the evening they conditionally have to take a taxi to earn their own bread. This is a huge problem – the absence of such professional elevators in the field.
Karpushkin: Probably the history of our company can be considered a kind of pioneer in this direction – we succeeded and showed that it is possible.
– How do you plan to further develop the “Earth” movie universe, what are your next plans for production?
Karpushkin: We are only at the beginning of the road and I still have nothing to brag about. In general, I believe that our humility should be ahead of us. It would be enough for me to know that someone came home, hit the start button, looked at our project, smiled, relaxed and felt good. For me, this is the main prize.
The fourth season of “The Earth” will be released exclusively to PREMIER online cinema in the first half of 2023.