— “Circus!” Tell us about your character in the series.
“He is a circus artist, a joker, a very confident guy, constantly making fun of him, unexpectedly appearing everywhere and solving some problems. He thinks he knows everything. I have also been working in the circus on Vernadsky Boulevard for eight years, I like it. I was very happy to have the opportunity to take part in such a series. We shot in the Great Moscow Circus on Vernadsky Boulevard and in Samara.
— In the description of the project, your hero is simply named dwarf, but does he have a name?
— During the rehearsal, when the director said, “Guys, the dwarf must appear now,” it was obvious that they were uncomfortable calling me a dwarf. I called the producer and asked if it was possible to call me, for example, only as Tema, so that the guys could communicate more easily. Everyone agreed, so I stayed as Tema.
— Were there any scenes where you had to do something unusual or difficult?
— First of all, there were problems due to constant flights to Samara. Then I worked on the schedule of our circus on Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays – it was difficult to combine this schedule with filming.
The stunt themes were unusual: we had a staged fight, I jumped from the six-foot bar counter onto a healthy person and seemed to knock him out. Because at that time, according to the scenario, he was killing my friends.
— Did you really jump or were you on the ropes?
“I ran, I flew high, I jumped on the mat. And he shook his fist and hit him in the jaw!
I rode a pony for the first time on set. There was a very stubborn pony in Samara who did not listen to anyone. I gave him candy and caressed him. It was difficult to sit on it, my legs were numb, I couldn’t hold it. I was uncomfortable because my center of gravity was apparently slightly different.
— Tell us about your relationship with the Zapashny brothers. How are they at work? Do you communicate in your spare time?
“I have a joke, I have a proposition: “I have a short relationship with Zapashny.” That’s the kind of relationship we have. They are great as leaders and they treat me well as people. I get along very well with them and respect everything they do. I love being involved in this business.
— Do you spend your free time together?
— We spent our free time playing KVN. We organize small buffets at premieres. In the circus we are always close, we see each other, we communicate. We spend most of our time there outside of work. And so that we only have free time… Although Edgard Valterovich and I periodically play chess. By the way, we need to remind him that we haven’t played for a long time.
– Who usually wins?
— As far as my memory serves me, our match score was 2:2.
— In cinema and theater, you often portray characters with similar personalities; What was the most unusual role for you?
— I really like my role in the circus play “One, two, …, four, five”. There I played a hunchbacked, dirty servant who constantly wanted to help Count Dracula. Dracula was played by Edgard Walterovich.
My favorite role in cinema is Lieutenant Sokolov in House Arrest.
— You said that you did not come to the casting of the movie “House Arrest” for a long time, and then you did not learn the script right away. Why did you initially underestimate this project?
“I don’t even remember, somehow I wasn’t prepared.” Maybe I was doing something else before this. And then Semyon Slepakov (known in the Russian Federation as a foreign agent) came up to me backstage at one of the KVN games and said: “When are you coming? “Come on,” I realized that’s it, I have to go.
— Is there a dream role or a character you want to play?
– I didn’t think about it. Of course, I filter the roles. When I receive offers to participate in some projects, I sometimes forward them to my people because I am busy. We have a “Small Talk” community; Here we not only share job offers, but also communicate about some daily social issues.
Meanwhile, an idea came to my mind: You can film a project about little people. We have our own little state where everyone has some kind of position and their own history. One is the president of this country, the other is a bandit (joking, of course). I really love fairy tales, I love fantasy. Now I take on the role of Satyr in the circus, the children are very happy and surprised. When I go to the lobby of the circus, they constantly take pictures, they do not believe that I am human. Mothers explain to them: “Yes, this is a person!” And my horns are so strong, my eyes are lensed, my makeup is great, my walk has changed. Children believe.
The children were very afraid of me when I was doing make-up for the game “One, Two,…, Four, Five”. Once a kid almost stabbed me with a plastic sword.
— You mentioned the community, a community of little people? How did it come together?
– It’s actually very big. And we communicate by chat with 60 people who work more or less in the media field – on some projects like “Fort Boyard”, part-time jobs in restaurants and nightclubs. By the way, I started with this. When I came to Moscow, one of my jobs was to open the door of a restaurant in a classic suit. Before this circus.
— Would you accept part-time work like this now?
– It depends on what kind of part-time job it is. It is possible to stand in a restaurant for an hour or an hour and a half greeting guests. If a friend or colleague says to me, “Tema, come on, you can stand next to me,” I will not refuse. If two people are needed, I will stand next to him. Or if I’m busy, I’ll delegate the part-time job to one of the guys who has a vacancy.
-What did you reject?
— One thing I don’t like is the “Wolf of Wall Street” style plot that throws a midget at a target or into a swimming pool. I was offered this. And there are a few more crude moments: I was once offered to act in porn. I immediately said no. This was already 10 years ago. I have a joke: “When I am 70-80 years old, I will try everything.”
— In “House Arrest” you had a romantic relationship with the heroine Olesya Sudzilovskaya, you woke up in the same bed. How were these scenes shot, did everything fit into the frame?
— There was a significant change in the script for me: I arrived on the set and it turned out that Olesya and I had changed the text. So it’s like I’m not his listener but he’s my listener. There were many shots: First, I was very worried and could not immediately catch another text. We also spent a lot of time shooting the scene with the cheesecakes. But thanks to Olesya, everything seemed to be going well for us!
— Do you need to somehow develop your sense of humor and irony, or is it innate?
— There is something of my own, but when I started playing in KVN, my personal irony developed much better and faster. I’m really starting to enjoy jokes about my height. When I start making jokes about me, I see how much the audience likes it. And I support this.
I will tell you about an incident that happened to me recently. There is a cleaning lady who works in the circus, she is a very good, kind woman. When I came, I kept asking “Tema, can I love you?” she says. “From where?” I say. Him: “By luck.” And I say, “Okay, caress it if it means something to you.” He tapped me on the shoulder once: “That’s it Tema, come on, goodbye.”
Then he comes and asks: “Tema, do you have brothers and sisters? By the way, where are you from?” I answer: “From the Sverdlovsk region. There are two brothers.” Him: “Are they older or younger?” I say “young”. He: “Are they small too?” Me: “No, I’m older: my mother, my father and my brothers.” He looks at me like this: “Oh, I see, there is a black sheep in the family.” And he laughs. I tell her: “Thank you, Aunt Val.”
Half an hour later he came running and apologized. I realized I made a very rude joke. It was a joke to him. I laughed myself too. He was talking about a saying whose meaning means that a person is different.
– Could something bother you?
– Maybe of course. Sometimes I cry. I can be disappointed when my loved ones suffer, when someone inflicts pain on someone else. I’m a human like everyone else.
— Are you more worried about yourself or your loved ones?
“It seems to me that I worry less about myself.” Because if I were more concerned about myself, I would be much more responsible. And I’m probably lazy.
— You said it can be disturbing when others call people dwarfs. How do you react when such words are used against you?
– If this is a person I don’t know, then this is my only reaction. If this is my friend, it is already clear with what attitude he said this to me. I have a friend who always calls me “midget” [чертов]”in a friendly home environment. And everyone understood that he did not say it with malicious intent. And so, depending on who said it, when, in what environment, in some places I treat it with humor, which happens more often, but in others I can take offense.
— How do you feel about being mistaken for Passepartout?
– Yes, they often tell me that I am Passepartout. I answer: “No, I’m not Passepartout.” I already take such jokes and comparisons very calmly. There is such a joke: on Instagram (the owner of the Meta company is known as an extremist in Russia and is banned) they took a photo of my friend Vovka Petrov, tagged me and wrote: “Nice to meet Artem Bobtsov.” To most of us, we look like the same person. I write a comment: “This is Vova, this is not me.”
— They don’t pay for KVN and it takes a lot of time. What did this game bring to you?
— Rich knowledge, acquaintance and experience in making jokes. And again, there was a friendly atmosphere that brought excitement. I loved watching KVN since my childhood, it was very interesting to learn behind the scenes of the game. I met people I watched on TV and I didn’t know I would be sitting at the same table with them.
— What are your favorite teams?
— “Raisy” is so funny. I know them all girls. “Pyatigorsk Team”. Yes, there are many teams. And “Ural dumplings” and “Unity” (I love the song themes) and “Kamyzyaki” are wonderful, Dagestan, “Sparta”, “Buns”. You can list and list.
— In your case, is it necessary to register your disability and what advantages does this provide?
— I registered it a long time ago, when I was 10 years old. First, I had a disability since childhood, and after I turned 18, I was given the third group for life. The third group is considered workers. My pension is small – nine and a few kopecks.
— Do you drive?
— I don’t have a driver’s license, I mostly travel by public transportation. If I wanted a license I would have it already, but I probably don’t want it yet.
— Do you go to exercise?
— I like playing chess and poker. My main activity is the circus.
— How should your day go so that you are as satisfied as possible by the evening?
– So that nothing bad will happen and I will be happy. I’m happy now; I am talking to you. I enjoyed our conversation. And I already think my day has been a blast. Thank you very much, nice to meet you. Come to the circus!