Nikita Mikhalkov

Nikita Sergeyevich Mikhalkov ( born October 21, 1945 in Moscow; native Nikita Sergeyevich Mikhalkov - Konchalovsky, Russian Никита Сергеевич Михалков ) is a Russian actor, film director, screenwriter and film producer.

Life and achievements

Family

Nikita Mikhalkov comes from a Russian family of artists. He is the son of the poet Sergei Vladimirovich Mikhalkov, who wrote the Soviet and Russian national anthem among others. His mother Natalya Kontschalowskaja, daughter of the painter Pyotr Konchalovsky and granddaughter of the painter Vasily Surikov, was a poet. Nikita Mikhalkov is also the brother of Andrei Konchalovsky (actually Andrei Konchalovsky ), which is also a film director, but unlike Nikita also works in the United States. Nikita's first wife Anastasija Wertinskaja, daughter of Alexander Vertinsky is a famous actress in Russia. Even his daughters Nadezhda Michalkowa and Anna Michalkowa and his sons Stepan Mikhalkov and Artyom Mikhalkov had appeared as an actor or actresses in Russian films. His second wife Tatjana Michalkowa is a well-known Russian fashion model.

Actor

Mikhalkov made ​​his film debut as an actor in 1961 in Vasily Ordynskis Tutschi nad Borskom. From 1963 to 1966 he studied acting training at the Shchukin - Acting School of the Vakhtangov Theatre and then attended courses directed by Mikhail Romm at the film school VGIK in Moscow. During this time he played his first major role in Georgi Danelijas Comedy stopover in Moscow ( 1963). Under his brother Andrei Mikhalkov directed played the prince in Nedidow A needle Nest ( 1969) and Sibiriada (1979). His roles in the Eldar Ryazanov movies Station for Two (1983) and A bitter Romance (1985 ) were popular with audiences and earned him ekran Actor Awards from the readers of the film magazine Sowjetski. He played so far in over 40 films, including in such on their own as The Barber of Siberia, where he the Russian Tsar Alexander III. embodied.

Director

Since the late 1960s, Mikhalkov also directs. Among his successful works of the 1970s include the Civil War film foreign among his peers (1974 ), the Chekhov adaptation Unfinished Piece for the Player Piano (1977 ) - for the 1977 he won a Golden Shell at the Festival Internacional de Cine de Donostia- San Sebastián - and Goncharov filming days in the life of Ilya Oblomov (1979), with Oleg Tabakow in the title role.

At the International Film Festival in Moscow, he received in 1983 for the marriage drama Without Witness a FIPRESCI Prize, he is since 2000 Festival President. 1986/87 turned Mikhalkov in Italy with Silvana Mangano and Marcello Mastroianni film Oci ciornie, are processed in the short stories of Anton Chekhov; Mastroianni won for Best Actor Award of the Cannes Film Festival 1987, Mikhalkov was twice nominated for the César Award for Best Foreign Film. Ciornie for Oci 1988 and 1992 for Urga. In 1991 he was awarded a Golden Lion for Urga at the International Film Festival in Venice. In 1993 he received for Urga a Nika for Best Director and a nomination at the Independent Spirit Awards and a nomination for Best Foreign Language Film at the Academy Awards in 1993. 1994 won Mikhalkov at the International Film Festival in Cannes for the Sun, Burnt by the Grand Prize of jury and prize of the Ecumenical jury and at the Academy Awards in 1995 as best Foreign Language Film. For BAFTA Awards, he was nominated in 1989 for Oci ciornie and 1996 for Utomljonnyje solnzem.

In 2010 he filmed with Utomljonnyje solnzem 2 a sequel to The Sun, which deceives us, in which he played again on the side of Oleg Menshikov one of the main roles. The film received an invitation to compete in the 63rd Cannes Film Festival, but remained without price. In Russia he has been accepted largely critical.

Filmography (selection)

Policy

On 16th October 2007 Mikhalkov, together with three other cultural workers wrote a letter to the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin. In this letter, Putin was asked to violate the constitution and rule for a third term as president.

The letter was published and sparked strong debate. The content and literary style were strongly reminiscent of the propaganda of the former Soviet regime. The authors of the letter have pretended to speak on behalf of all artists.

Here is the translation of some excerpts from the letter.