— The premiere of the feature film “Holidays” took place in September. Did you immediately plan for it to continue as a series, or did that decision come along the way?
– Of course, everything was distributed. There were two premieres in a row: a feature film that would introduce people to the characters and a series that would delve into their daily lives.
— The movie “Holidays” was your directorial debut, not counting the short film “Odnushka” and the pilot episode of the “Macron” series. What do you think about being a director, do you feel your professional development?
— Responsibility is always difficult. Here, I actually had to take on a managerial position at one point. What can I say, the responsibility is too much, sometimes it prevents some decisions from being made. Therefore, there are not only directors, but also producers and TV series producers. Among the compromises, offers and denials, we find the right answer and move the shooting process forward.
— Is it difficult to feel like a project manager and carry great responsibility?
— It’s not hard to feel like a leader. I was most worried about the moments when I wasn’t shooting. So I feel pretty comfortable on set; Like an actor, only this time I say what I will do. And the project is not just a platform, but also a pre-production, readings, workshop meetings and character development. This was something new for me. Just like post-production, after filming is complete, you deal with the color scheme, sound, musical component, and sound design, as well as editing. All of these can make or break a project. It helps a lot to have professionals nearby when you first encounter this. Good Story Media team helped me a lot.
— What was the most difficult thing for you while directing the movie and TV series “Holidays”?
— What I was talking about was mostly post-production. Because this is new for me and it also has its own deadlines and schedules that I have to adhere to. Sometimes my job as an actor wouldn’t allow me to do that, and then the creative producers and showrunners did it, and I’m extremely grateful to them. I could completely trust them because we toured the site together and they have excellent taste in quality.
— The cast of “Holidays” is very strong – Maria Aronova, Vitaly Khaev… How did you manage to assemble such a cast and what was it like directing professionals?
– Professionals, that’s what they are. If we do everything right and uncertain things become clear before their eyes, they will begin to trust us. The important thing is not to lose it, because players are quick-tempered, grumpy people and have their own psychophysics. Each must have its own key. Additionally, players often submit their own solutions and we take it into development. I’m not forcing you to do it the way I want – that is, they did something in the analysis, they did something through the demonstration, but with the reference that it should be done by Vitaly Khaev or Maria Aronova with their chic organics.
— How has your acting experience helped you in your work on the other side of the camera?
“As I told our writers and producers: ‘You understand, I’m not a director, I’m an actor, I just play the director.’ Sometimes it helped to hide my emotions, find common ground with the players, I convinced them that the player had already found the answers to his questions, and then everything started working.
—You have known Anastasia Kalashnikova, who played one of the main roles in “Holidays”, for a long time. Does cooperation affect friendship? How do you deal with conflicts that arise?
— Nastya Kalashnikova, Nikita Pavlenko, Sergei Kanaev – these are people whom I know very well and maintain friendship with, although I am not their director. As you said before, they are professionals, especially the acting profession, and we have no personal disagreements regarding existence in front of the camera. I offer them analysis, help them in some places, guide them in some places, and correct their mistakes in some places. I’m minding my own business. And if everyone did their job on the set, everything would be much better in the cinema. I approach the status of director very responsibly, because as someone who has worked a lot in cinema, I understand that there are not enough directors in the country – just like there are not enough screenwriters. I try to take the analysis of the material and the assignment of tasks to the players very seriously. Because everyone needs their own approach. And as an actor, I live every story when I sit behind the playback. True, on the contrary, I want to forget about it, otherwise it will not be enough for me if the shooting day is difficult.
— Your first directorial attempt could have been “Macron”, for which you shot the pilot episode. Why didn’t you continue working on the series and Tatyana Surovtseva took over the series?
“Of course they offered to film it, but we couldn’t fit it into the schedule. I was shooting the TV series “Holidays” and was making preparations. I decided that I needed to do what I was already doing and not branch out into other projects.
— You played in KVN as a child. Tell us about your experience: At what age and at what level did you qualify for any league? Were you primarily a writer or an actor? How did this experience affect you as an actor and director?
— At school I played in KVN, then played at various institutes and got into the national team of the city of Engels. I was in the Ryazan League, went to the Sochi Festival four times. He acted as an actor – less as a writer, of course, but he added something, even though it was funny, because I was just a kid then. Then, from the age of 16, he confidently played in the team and joked with everyone. This led to me becoming an actor because before that I had been practicing vocals for eight years and analyzing lyrics was my first contact with drama. And because I did too much KVN, I failed at school and was wondering where to go. I came to the conservatory to study voice, but they said that it would be difficult for me without solfeggio, which I had been happily skipping for several years, they advised me to go to the theater. This is how it all turned out.
— Sometimes you post funny videos on social networks where you laugh at other people’s ridiculous videos. What does creating these types of videos give you? Do you see this as a break from work?
— Sometimes rest, sometimes work. Sometimes you just see a video and now you have all the tools to do it. And sometimes you see a video, you think about what needs to be done, you put it off, it accumulates so much that it becomes impossible to clean it, and you feel responsible. Of course I wish this was more about relaxation, but if I don’t finish a video I feel like I haven’t done anything and it becomes work.
– You became a father in the spring. How do you feel in this situation, how has your life changed?
— My life has completely changed. First of all, I wake up constantly at night now. Secondly, I had another big responsibility and of course restrictions arose. Since there is less time for the same videos, it’s now Myron’s turn, so sometimes he gets to be a part of these videos too. We go on tour with my wife and Miron, for example, when I realize that I will be gone for a month. Children are a great happiness, and I was lucky to be a father, and Miron was lucky to be a son.
— Will you accept any choices your child makes, or will you try to encourage the ideas that seem most beneficial to him? Creating a parenting strategy?
“I think parenting strategy is a bad concept.” We had some sort of plan and we’re sticking to it, but things change. We grew up in a different time and will be raised differently than we planned depending on those around us. For example, it seems like kids shouldn’t be taught how to use tools, but at this age my kid was just crawling towards the tool because apparently he sees us constantly polishing our faces with it.
I think we will gradually raise the child and develop ourselves to the status of parents. We will find more optimal educational solutions. I want to be a good parent who knows everything. We must listen to what the child wants and what I can give him.