I used to make “bombs” when I was a kid
Alexey Balabanov grew up in a family with strong professional roots. His mother led the Sverdlovsk Institute of Balneology and Physiotherapy, while his father worked as an editor at a local film studio in the department of popular science films. Looking back on his childhood, Balabanov described growing up with working parents who traveled for work, which he recalls as shaping him into a bit of a hooligan who lived by the rule, “everyone ran, I ran.” In one interview, he confessed that his curiosity set him apart from peers mainly through chemistry; he enjoyed mixing and testing different compositions from Young Chemist kits and learned how to create and explode a variety of mixtures.
I played in a rock band
During school years Balabanov gravitated more toward music than cinema. In 1975 he joined forces with friends to form a rock band called Keri. Balabanov played guitar, while classmate Evgeniy Gorenburg handled piano and electric organ. The group drew a repertoire from iconic acts popular among Soviet youth, including The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Deep Purple, and Led Zeppelin. Even when Keri won a city contest for political songs, their performance featured an anthem from Chilean communists. Four decades later, Gorenburg recalled Balabanov’s raw performance style, noting that he played guitar hesitantly and sang with a distinctive, imperfect edge.
He served as a military translator in the army
In 1981 Balabanov completed the translation department at the Gorky Pedagogical Institute of Foreign Languages and entered military service as a translator. His two years in service took him to Ethiopia, Angola, Guinea, South Yemen, Syria, and Afghanistan. He later said that his military experiences, along with stories from colleagues, influenced many of his films and added texture to their characters and plots.
I chose a vest instead of a suit
Balabanov preferred modest attire and liked to avoid drawing attention to himself in public. He rented tuxedos for film festivals but preferred a simple vest in daily life. This habit dated back to his army days, and he stuck with it over the years, even during his time in the navy.
I wrote the script of my first movie in one night
Balabanov’s first feature was the short film It Used to Be a Different Time, created in 1987 while he studied at the Higher Courses of Screenwriters and Directors. He drafted the script in a single night and, lacking funds for decorations or actor wages, negotiated with the Sverdlovsk restaurant Old Fortress to shoot at night. He cast visitors as extras and enlisted members of Nautilus Pompilius as guest stars. The film’s title comes from a line in Butusov’s song Nobody Will Believe from the 1985 album Invisible.
I shot “Brother” in my own apartment
Early in his career Balabanov moved to St. Petersburg with his second wife, Nadezhda Vasilyeva. They shared a flat on Ligovsky Prospekt while Viktor Sukhorukov, a friend then pursuing acting, lived nearby with a neighbor who struggled with alcohol. The two households swapped spaces, and Balabanov later used the communal apartment to film pivotal scenes for the first Brother.
Actors were not paid for the filming of the movie “Brother”
The film’s tight budget meant actors often worked for symbolic sums or for nothing. Vyacheslav Butusov, who created the soundtrack and also appeared in the film, participated without payment, in exchange for a commitment to produce a video for his song In the Rain. This kind of barter was instrumental in bringing the project to life and keeping production affordable.
Actors are forced to speak in someone else’s voice
Balabanov placed a strong emphasis on sound. He described the process as a form of reshooting, believing that dubbing one actor with another’s voice could inject extra energy into a performance. In Brother and Brother 2, Viktor Sukhorukov’s dialogue was voiced by Alexey Poluyan, Sergey Murzin by Alexander Stroev, Daria Yurgens by Natalya Danilova, and Roman Tokar by Yuri Stoyanov. In Zhmurki, Alexey Panin’s lines were voiced by Yuri Galtsev, while Panin supplied the voice for Sergei Glazunov. These voice swaps created a distinctive auditory texture across Balabanov’s work.
I bought clothes for the actors from a second-hand store.
Budget limitations affected not only payroll but wardrobe as well. The now-iconic gray sweater for the hero was bought by Balabanov’s wife, who also served as the costume designer, from a second-hand shop for 35 rubles. Balabanov felt the sweater looked too good, so the film’s lead character wore a more modest Bolognese windbreaker. For other outfits, Vasilyeva plundered her own wardrobe, including a green coat she wore during filming and pieces later used in other projects.
He taught the actor how to drive a tram
During filming, the crew learned a variety of new skills. Actress Svetlana Pismichenko, who played the heroine’s friend Sveta, learned to drive a tram, while cameraman Sergei Astakhov swapped the camera for the wheel of a truck used in the sequence where Danila Bagrov heads to Moscow. In the sequel, Astakhov again took on a different role, fashioning a self-propelled gun for a key scene with help from improvised materials after industry technicians declined to contribute.
I liked shooting without stuntmen
Balabanov preferred actors performing their own stunts, aiming for authentic fear on screen. For instance, Sergei Bodrov leapt onto a moving tram in the first Brother, and Ingeborga Dapkunaite swam an icy river in War. The director often recalled a moment from the 1990s when a young actor faced a real scare during a dangerous sequence, a memory that underscored his commitment to realism.
He brought the homeless to his home
Balabanov was known for his compassion. According to the memoirs of Nadezhda Vasilyeva, he would invite homeless people to their home to warm up and eat. He believed every person deserved a chance to see a story he had created, a small act of kindness that reflected his character and values.