Interview with Evgeny Golynkin, winner of Bosifest 2015

What are your`s impressions from last year`s festival where you get the frand prix? How did you like Belgrade?

The  festival itself is one of the strongest impression. Not only the films that were shown but the fact that the festival like this exists. For me, Darko will always be the person with strong personality, dignified behavior and a very wise attitude towards life. I am convinced that the organization of the festival is more than complex, even in support of the authorities (I`ve seen how they treat him, but in this situation, help is never enough).

I am proud that my film is highly rated at the festival. If I had the opportunity (but unfortunately I don`t) I would made a film about Darko.  For him and people like him do not need to say that they have limited options (disability) because it is accident that makes them even stronger and wiser. I therefor repeat, participation at the festival and the prize is real honor and happiness for me.

This was the first time I was in Belgrade and, unfortunately, I stayed only few days so I couldn`t check on it in detail but now I know that there is a beautiful city to which I can always go back. The biggest impression on me was several museums I have been able to visit. In particular, the Ethnographic Museum and Cinematheque. Also destroyed buildings in the city center, as the memory of the war.

Firstly you completed Faculty of Chemistry then Faculty of theater, music and film. When and why you began to pursue film?

Honestly, the film, especially documentary, I started to deal with accidently. At that time (1976.) I left Chemistry. I tried various ways to edit my life and only when I enrolled in the Leningrad Faculty of documentary film, I realized that I found what I needed. I can not sing, dance, draw, math is not going well, and I do not know many other things but I was always interested in what kind of a strange creature man is. Now I know that the answer to that question doesn`t exist but it is still exiting to explore it. That is, probably, the most interesting thing that I know.

When did you start to take an interest in lives of persons with disabilities?

In 1986. I recorded film  “Nicola Lenjinkov`s temptation” (film exists on my facebook page). This is film about a peasant, who lost his arm in childhood, because that was the time of the war. But it would never have occurred me to say that he is a person with disability because he did lot more with that one hand than I could do with four of them. After ten years I made another film about him, “How can I, oh Lord” ( also on my facebook page). And this last year`s film isn`t about a person with disability. They are fighter`s, do not want to surrender. It is much more interesting to make film about people who do not win just current circumstances, but DESTINY. And Darko is one of them.

People in Serbia often say that when they want to watch good movie, they watch Russian film. Are you familiar with Serbian cinematography?

Unfortunately, I do not know much about Serbian cinematography. Russia do not show many of your films and I don’t speak any other language except Russian. So I can say i`m person with disability too. But one film seems like the culmination of your cinema and it is “Sledgehammer” by Aleksandar Ilic.

Are you now working on new film?

Now i`m working on new film about cardiac surgeons. Fifty years ago my professor Leonid Gurjevic recorded movie, “Heart”. This was our first about cardiac surgeons, the doctors, their concerns, their fears. My film will be called “Heart, 40 years later”.

Can you recommend a film or director for this year`s BOSIFEST?

I would recommend Darja Hernova and her film “who will be my husband”. I saw a lot of films about people with disabilities, and this seems like very deep and unusual film.