The famous film director was born in 1952 in Moscow. He was the son of
famous Community Party figure Georgi Shahnazarov. Karen has started
filming when he was still a student. His popular films include “We come
from jazz”, “The city of zero”, “Murder of the King”, “Winter Nights in
Gagra” and others. This year, Karen presented his film “The horseman
named Death”. The film got differing reviews.
“168 hours” weekly: There was a time when, during an interview, Othar
Ioselian said that the film industry has expired itself and it is
impossible to find new plots. Is the century of film really over? Is
there really nothing left to say, or do you have anything do say about
this?
Karen Shahnazarov: Of course, I do not share that opinion. The world of
cinema is progressing. If you do not make films, that does not mean
that there is nothing to express. Each one of us thinks that cinema
started by itself and will end on its own. If you have noticed, cinema
is changing and turning more into a computer graphics art. But it is
still developing.
“168”: You answered my next question. Cinema today looks more
artificial due to the computer graphics. Will films in the future be
more of a matrix style?
Karen Shahnazarov: Absolutely not. I think that there is no future for
those kinds of films. There are outlooks for the traditional cinema…
“168”:However, the youth of today prefer watching the “Matrix”.
K.S.The generation nowadays likes to eat up everything it sees. But I
think that time will change everything. The computerized film may be
considered simply as a cartoon, nothing more. For example, American
cinematographers have made a film about Laurence Oliver with the help
of computer graphics. So what? This confirms what I said before that
the course taken is toward making cartoon films. The level of
technology is rising, that’s all.
“168”-Let’s talk about “Mosfilm”. After the collapse of the Soviet
Union, it was still possible to re-establish the studio. Today, the
films produced receive different types of awards. Some films have even
gotten Oscars. Does the studio film everything it can, or is there a
course taken for making films based on intellectuality?
K.S.: We film everything. This large studio can not only make
intellectual films. We film soap operas, the so-called action films,
etc. Our income is the only issue at hand.
“168”: After the collapse of the collaboration with the Soviet Union,
have there been any tries in making ties with Russia and starting a new
project?
K.S.: Not in my days. To tell you the truth, I doubt that the
republican studios still function. I know for a fact that the
“Gruzia-Film” studio has collapsed, Dovzhenko’s studio is in a horrible
situation and I have no idea how “HyeFIlm” is doing. I think they
wanted to be privatized. I don’t know what will happen. Perhaps the
only studio that functions well is the Minsk studio and even competes
with that. Filming is cheaper there.
“168”: Your last project was dedicated to one of the world-known
international terrorists Boris Savinkov. Is the showing of a film like
that allowed in Russia? Do you have anything to say to the society?
K.S.: With this film, I have tried to express my opinion about
terrorism. For me, Savinkov’s romanticism was not the main thing. That
man has given a very simple explanation of terrorism through his acts.
I have tried to present that. As we all know, terrorism does not happen
out of nowhere. There are reasons for that. We must try to understand
the psychology of people who commit terrorist acts. Why do they choose
to take that road? If we do not grasp this concept, then we can not
fight against terrorism.
“168”: But Savinkov himself formed a philosophy that justified itself
and the basis for that was the clause “I kill because I want to kill”.
K.S.: In order to understand terrorism it is necessary to start from
the main source. Without conception it is impossible to fight against
it. Applying force is not a solution. I get amazed when I hear
announcements stating that we can not negotiate with terrorists. So
what, should we let our children die?
“168”: Do you think negotiating is the right path to take?
K.S.: Yes, I think so. We must understand what terrorism means and I
think that the best explanation given can be found in Savinkov’s book.
He tells the whole truth.
“168”: Fine, let’s accept the fact that this is an issue for
discussion. Let’s talk about your future plans. You are not only a
bureaucrat, but also a” play trainer”. Do you have any new ideas at the
present?
K.S.: I am currently writing a new screenplay, but don’t ask me
anything about it. I will not go further in detail neither about the
screenplay nor the theme. I must add that among us there are people who
have suspicions.