The story written by Michael Idov follows a week in the life of Boris Arkadiev, a fictional Soviet stand-up comedian, in 1984. Boris is tormented not only by external oppression and censorship, but also by his own insecurities that poison all his relationships. The comedian will eventually take his revenge through his “insult humor”.

“For me, the story of Boris Arkadiev is intensely personal on several levels. I have set it in my hometown of Jurmala, the year 1984 places it deep in the realm of my own childhood memories and, in many ways, I intend it to be a confession and exploration of my own compromises and insecurities, both as a Soviet Jew and as an American, whose odd biography has led him to become a public figure in the modern Russia”, Michael Idov said in a statement.

The film has an international cast and crew and stars Aleksey Agranovich as Boris Arkadiev. The cast includes Yuriy Kolokolnikov, Alisa Khazanova, Vilma Kutaviciute, Semyon Steinberg, Artyom Volobuyev and Polina Aug.

The film is produced by Artem Vasilyev through Russia’s Metrafilms, Andrey Saveliev, Aija Berzina through Latvia’s Tasse Film and Artemio Benki through Sirena Film from the Czech Republic. The project is supported by the Russian Ministry of Culture, the National Film Centre of Latvia, the Riga Film Fund and Eurimages. The budget is 1.3 m EUR, representatives of Metrafilms told FNE.

Michael Idov moved to the U.S. from the former U.S.S.R. at the age of 16. After a degree in film studies from the University of Michigan, he embarked on a series of odd jobs that included anchoring a Russian news programme and owning a failed coffee house, and ended with his joining the staff of New York Magazine.

Production Information:

Tasse Film
www.tasse.lv
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Sirena Film
www.sirenafilm.com
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Credits:

Director: Michael Idov
Scriptwriter: Michael Idov
DoP: Aleksander Surkala
Costume designer: Aleksander Osipov
Production designer: Aivars  Žukovskis
Cast: Aleksey Agranovich ,Yuriy Kolokolnikov, Alisa Khazanova, Vilma Kutaviciute, Semyon Steinberg, Artyom Volobuyev, Polina Aug