BIOGRAPHY
Artem Mikhalkov is a representative of the famous creative dynasty of Mikhalkov-Konchalovsky, the middle child in the family of Nikita Mikhalkov. His older sister is actress Anna Mikhalkova, his younger sister is Nadezhda Mikhalkova. Artem reasons: “Here you need to understand that Anya and I were raised by a slightly different Nikita Mikhalkov, who later raised Nadya. Nadya is a late child, and therefore a lot was forgiven to her. And we grew up during the years of his creative growth. And then, of course, he was not always restrained.”
From early childhood, Artem was surrounded by a creative atmosphere. Already at the age of one and a half years he made his film debut - in 1978 he got a small role in Andrei Konchalovsky’s film “Siberiada”.
After graduating from school, Nikita Mikhalkov sent his son to college in Italy, but a year later Artem returned home. In 1993, he entered the directing department of VGIK (course of Marlen Khutsiev).
DIRECTOR
Artyom’s first work was the short film “Stop,” which he shot together with Ilya Khrzhanovsky. The debut was successful, the film received awards at several film festivals.
In 2010, Mikhalkov took part in the creation of the film almanac “Moscow, I love you!”, where at the center of each story is Moscow with its joys and troubles, meetings and partings. In this film, Artem shot the short story “Work”. He says: “I am very glad that I was able to participate in this project. Of course, I would like my short film “Work” to last not five minutes, but at least twenty, but it was also good to practice the joke genre. And what we filmed is a pure joke, because Moscow is drowning in brands, and it’s impossible not to laugh at it.”
Mikhalkov shot his first full-length film “Bet on Love” in 2020. The plot centers on the story of two dissimilar friends who, by coincidence, change places. The director says: “I have long wanted to make a feature-length film, but due to various circumstances it did not work out for me. Either they offered scripts that had lost their relevance, or they could not find a common language with the producers. Cinema is a collective thing, everything here depends not only on you. I really liked the script - it is light and bright, and I wanted to make just such a film. In the finale, the hero, despite all temptations, chooses the right path - this is the main thing I wanted to tell the audience about. I wanted to make a film for the whole family that parents would be interested in going to see with their children.”
Documentary
Artem Mikhalkov is the author of several documentaries. In 2007, he directed the film “Steam Locomotive No. 1. “Red Arrow”, which tells the story of the legendary Russian train from the 30s of the 20th century to the present day.
In 2010, the premiere of the film “The Mystery of the Black Prince” took place, dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the Russian submarine fleet.
In 2020, for the 70th anniversary of Nikita Mikhalkov, Artem shot a documentary film “Is it difficult to be Mikhalkov,” consisting of a series of frank conversations with his father. This picture is an attempt to show the great director as he really is. “It seems to me that something more happened than just a frank conversation. With me, my father is, of course, more open, and this openness sometimes led to quite unexpected answers. I spent quite a lot of time with him, asking questions that I had never been able to ask before. And I received very frank answers to them. Moreover, not only dad is involved in the film - all family members were noted. I think it will be interesting for many to watch,” Artem says about his film.
Life before marriage
Daria comes from an intelligent family. My mother worked for many years as a programmer at a research institute. My father, with a MATI diploma, collaborated with many design bureaus and research companies. Despite the fact that the parents divorced, they managed to maintain good relations and shower their daughter with love. Since school, Mikhalkov has dreamed of becoming an actress and acting in films.
A year before graduating from school, Daria attended courses at VGIK, where she met the son of the eminent director Nikita Mikhalkov, Artem. For a simple girl, the family ties of a new acquaintance did not matter at all. There was immediate sympathy between the young people and they went on a date several times. At this point their paths diverged.
Two years later, Daria and Artem met by chance in a cafe, where the girl was celebrating her own birthday. As it turned out, she did not have time to pass the entrance exams, so she was on tour as part of a dance group. Old feelings flared up with greater force, they could not enjoy each other. After half a year, the happy couple began living under the same roof.
On New Year's Eve, Artem brought Daria to Nikolina Mountain, where he introduced his beloved girl to her parents. Her innate charm and goodwill helped her cope with incredible anxiety. The eminent family warmly welcomed the future daughter-in-law and tried to avoid awkward moments. Nikita Sergeevich’s powerful energy did its job. So Daria became part of a famous and talented acting family.
After some time, the couple played a quiet wedding, attended only by close friends and relatives. Daria chose a modest but elegant wedding dress in the color of baked milk.
Artem put on a classic suit and walked his beloved woman down the aisle. The next day, the newlyweds flew off on their honeymoon, which covered France, Italy, and Spain.
ACTOR
In his last year at VGIK, Artem starred in a small role in Roman Balayan’s drama “Two Moons, Three Suns.” In the same year, he took part in the filming of the film “The Barber of Siberia”, where he played the role of cadet Buturlin and acted as an assistant director. Artem recalls: “When I was filming The Barber of Siberia with my father, he sent us to the Kostroma Military School for four months, where we lived in real barracks. And if I had any false ideas about myself before that, it quickly went away.”
In 2003, Mikhalkov starred in the TV series “Plot”, and after that he played one of the roles in Vladimir Khotinenko’s film “72 Meters”. A real acting success for Artem was his role in Fyodor Bondarchuk’s film “9th Company”, after which real fame came to him and he was increasingly invited to act in films.
To date, the actor’s filmography includes more than 20 film roles. Artem Mikhalkov starred in the films “Snow on the Head”, “In the Forests and on the Mountains”, “Burnt by the Sun-2: Imminence”, “SpiritLess”, “Countergame”, “Talk to me about love”, and others.
OTHER ACTIVITIES
In the early 2000s, Artem founded his own, which shoots music videos, commercials and documentaries. She has many successfully completed projects to her credit, including the Lyube group’s video for the song “Guys from Our Yard.”
Artem Mikhalkov is the president of the national debut film festival “Movement”. “We have a multi-format festival. And the line between documentary and feature films is blurring a little today, because you can make a movie on an iPhone and still get into our main competition. The question is how will you do it. It seems to me that the more creative we are, the greater the interest of young people in our festival,” says Artem.
Together with his paternal brother Stepan Mikhalkov, who is involved in the restaurant business, Artem is the co-founder of the Veterok restaurant in Gorki-2.
Artyom Mikhalkov will become president
The results will be published on the website of the Ministry of Culture, but discussions are underway behind the scenes. As you know, we hold a lot of festivals. Some people think there are too many of them. Probably for this reason, some film screenings are generally denied state support, for example, the pioneer of the festival movement, Constellation, which is focused on acting achievements. But the management of Kinoshock, which takes place in Anapa and specializes in cinema from the CIS and Baltic countries, was afraid that they would cut off its oxygen altogether. Recently the following judgments have appeared: let neighboring countries finance this film screening themselves, and not at the expense of Russia. And the management of Kinoshok decided to survive despite the circumstances and hold the festival in any case. However, the storm has passed, and Kinoshoku, apparently, will still be allocated budget funds.
It is clear that the Moscow International Film Festival, headed in recent years by Nikita Mikhalkov, will receive significant support. The country's main national festival, Kinotavr, will not be offended either. And this is absolutely correct. The new festival “Movement” also took first place. For the first time it will be held from April 24 to 28 in Omsk. They say that he will be given 20 million. For comparison, one of the best festivals, Artdocfest, specializing in original documentary films, will receive 2 million budget funds. The president of the Movement will be the actor and director, as well as the son of Nikita Mikhalkov, Artyom Mikhalkov.
This is the first National Debut Film Festival, which was supported not only by the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation, but also by the Government of the Omsk Region. The organizers declare it as a laboratory of new names and trends, a boutique of new styles. More than 300 applications were received for the competition. As a result, it selected 8 experimental and original films produced in 2012 and 2013 and not released: “Doctor” by Vladimir Pankov, “Link” by Roman Volkov, “The Sea” by Alexandra Strelyana, “Linar” by Anastasia Tarasova, “Winter of the Dead. Blizzard" by Nikolai Pigarev, "Denis Davydov. TRIP” by Ksandra Kolesnik and Anton Seregin (this is a documentary film), “Marusya” by Eva Pervolovici (director of Romanian origin lives in France) and “Salam, Maskva!” Pavel Bardin (a compositionally complete fragment of the author's series). Outside the competition, documentaries and short films will be shown. Each section has the word “Movement” in its name. And then - “Vector”, “School” and so on. Let's say, “Movement. Vector" will consist of the most notable films by leading directors of the new generation, both premiered and released throughout the year.
It is interesting that the 20th Festival of student and debut films “St. Anna” is taking place in Moscow these days, which Nikita Mikhalkov has recently been patronizing. It mainly presents short films from different film schools - VGIK, St. Petersburg University of Film and Television, Higher Courses for Scriptwriters and Directors, and the Higher School of Journalism. In addition, there are festivals of VGIK, St. Petersburg University of Film and Television, as well as the International Debut Festival “Spirit of Fire” in Khanty-Mansiysk, headed by Sergei Solovyov.
A TELEVISION
In 2009, Artem was the host of the series of programs “Legends of Video Salons” on the NTV channel, and in 2010 he hosted the entertainment show “INTERset” on STS.
Mikhalkov can often be seen as a participant in various entertainment television shows. In 2007, he took part in the Channel One project “Circus with the Stars”, and in 2013 he participated in “Ice Age”, where he skated together with Tatyana Navka.
In 2012, the director took part in the educational project “Polyglot” on the Kultura TV channel, where he and other participants learned Italian.
Directing and television
In addition to acting, Mikhalkov Jr. managed to prove himself as a TV presenter. In 2009, he worked on a series of programs on the NTV channel “Legends of Video Salons,” consisting of 12 episodes. Artem also hosted an entertainment program on STS.
Mikhalkov has appeared on television screens more than once as a guest star in popular shows. In 2007 he participated in the “Circus with the Stars”, later there was the “Polyglot” project, where he studied Italian. One of the latest high-profile projects was the Ice Age program. The actor performed in pairs with figure skater Tatyana Navka.
Ultimately, Artem proved that he is an individual and owes his success only to himself, and not to his star parents. Mikhalkov Jr. managed to carry out his plans. He was able to open his own film company called “Kinodom”.
Today, Artem is working with a team of like-minded people who translate ideas into videos, commercials, and documentaries. Among the works of his film company there is a video for the group “Lube” for the song “Guys from Our Yard”, several high-quality documentaries: “Library of Russian Classics”, “Passion for Russia” and others.
In 2013, Artem Mikhalkov organized the debut film festival “Movement”, the city of Omsk was chosen as a permanent site. Every year, both already famous directors and newcomers to cinema become participants in the festival. At the event, winners in the field of creating feature-length, short and documentary films are determined. In 2020, participants in the competition included Kirill Pletnev with the film “Without Me”, Zhora Kryzhovnikov with the project “Call DiCaprio!”, Boris Khlebnikov with the work “An Ordinary Woman” and others.
INTERVIEW
About friendship
“Friendship for me is relationships with three friends with whom I have been communicating since first grade. It seems to me that close friends can only be from childhood, and those who appear in adulthood are more likely acquaintances. It is impossible to quarrel with real old friends. Life shows that friendship is stronger than marriage: you can divorce your wife, but ruining a strong friendship is incredibly difficult, and I don’t even want to think about it. With real friends you can talk about everything and nothing. You can always rely on them."
About the film process
“Cinema is about compromises. And if you don’t know how to communicate and make friends, then it will be very difficult for you to implement certain projects.”
About cinema
“Today cinema is a production story. How many cases do we know when a director left a project, then returned, and then the producers began filming themselves? This didn't happen before. Considering the current situation, I am incredibly glad that at the age of 40 I have the opportunity to make films and discover something new. For me, this is still a search and a very big experiment, so I listen very much to what they say around me. For now I just want to shoot.”
About a modern hero
“In fact, it could be any person, and it’s a big mystery to me why people are always looking for him. They are always looking for this hero. It seems to me that he could be of any profession, the main thing is what happens to this hero and how he reacts to the “challenges of our time.”
About the opportunity to star in your own film
“This is the highest courage. I don’t have such thoughts yet. Maybe I would give myself one of the roles in my film, but it seems to me that at the moment I need to focus on either one or the other. It is impossible to do everything at once. This is what happened to my father, and he won an Oscar. But this is one case in a million."
Artem Mikhalkov - biography, personal life, children
Biography of Artem Mikhalkov, celebrity career
Artem Mikhalkov was born on December 8, 1975 in the family of the well-known Nikita and Tatyana Mikhalkov. Nikita Mikhalkov at that time was already a recognized film actor and director, his mother was an equally famous fashion model in the fashion world.
The boy's uncle is Andron Konchalovsky, a world-famous director. The entire family of the future actor was very famous; Artem’s grandfather and grandmother were famous writers.
The boy's life from childhood was interesting and creative. When Artem was 3 years old , he acted in a movie for the first time. It was the film “Siberiada” by Andron Konchalovsky. The next film is “Dark Eyes” by Nikita Mikhalkov; Artem was 12 years old during the filming of the film. It was on the set that Artem Mikhalkov met the well-known Marcello Mastroianni.
And yet, Artem admits that it was quite difficult for him to be a star child. Relationships with peers were difficult, and the child had almost no friends. Peers, due to the fame of Artem’s parents, treated him with prejudice.
Artem constantly felt responsible for his famous surname, and understood that he had to prove himself at the level or become even better than his relatives. The upbringing in the family was quite strict.
The boy studied in an ordinary school. After graduation, Artem leaves for Italy , where he studies at an American college. When he returns to his homeland, he enters the Marlena Khutsieva directing department at VGIK. The famous father did not provide assistance in admission; moreover, he did not even know about Artem’s plans.
After completing his studies, Artem receives his first fame and recognition thanks to his diploma work. This is a short film called "Stop" that is 11 minutes long. This work of Mikhalkov has received many prestigious prizes and significant awards.
Before this, Artem already had little experience in acting and directing. He acted as an assistant director in the film “The Barber of Siberia.” Mikhalkov also played the role of Buturlin, but this acting experience does not give him significant fame and success.
Moreover, as an actor he was almost not in demand during this period; he had only a few roles in minor episodes. Among the films in which Mikhalkov took part are R. Balayan’s drama “Two Moons, Three Suns,” the famous Russian series “Plot,” and the drama “Seventy-Two Meters.”
Real recognition and success came to the actor after filming the film “The Ninth Company.” All the famous relatives were at the premiere. Nikita Mikhalkov himself noted Artem’s performance as worthy. It should be said that Nikita Mikhalkov rarely praises other people.
In addition to acting, Artem showed himself well as a TV program host . He was the host of one of the entertainment programs on STS, and hosted a series of programs on the NTV channel called “Legends of Video Salons.”
Artem Mikhalkov is also often invited as a popular TV star to many television shows. For example, in 2007 he participated in the “Circus with the Stars”, in the famous project “Polyglot” Artem is studying the Italian language. One of the recent bright projects is the program “Ice Age”, where the actor performs together with Tatyana Navka, who is a figure skater.
At the moment, Artem Mikhalkov has his own film company , which produces documentaries, commercials and music videos. Among the most famous creations is a video for the group “Lube” for the song “Guys from Our Yard”, documentaries “Library of Russian Classics”, “Passion for Russia” and many others.
I would like to say that Artem was able to show that he is no less an outstanding personality than his star parents and managed to achieve everything in life on his own. He proved himself worthy and became widely known as an actor, TV presenter, director, producer and screenwriter.
As for Artem Mikhalkov’s personal life, he is currently divorced. He met his ex-wife Daria during his student years. The couple dated for quite a long time, after which they formalized their relationship. Some time later, the couple had a daughter, Natasha.
The couple lived together for 15 years and were considered an exemplary couple. But not so long ago, in 2013, they decided to file for divorce. Neither Artem nor Daria commented on , because they believe that this topic should not be discussed in the press.
The ex-wife filed for alimony and claimed a quarter of Artem’s income; the actor himself complained that meetings with his daughter were very rare. Despite all this, Mikhalkov remained on friendly terms with his ex-wife, and the ex-couple apparently found a compromise.
According to media reports, Artem Mikhalkov is now paired with designer Polina Lebedeva. According to rumors, they are already living a life together. Mikhalkov refused to comment on his relationship; one can only guess how his new relationship will end.
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Personal life
During his student days, Artem met his future wife, an applicant named Dasha. Their romance lasted for a long time. And only in 2001 the Mendelssohn march sounded for them.
In 2002, as a guarantor of family well-being, the young couple had a daughter, Natashenka. The Mikhalkovs lived together for 15 years. Moreover, in their family life there was not even a hint of a break in relations. And in 2013, unexpectedly for many, Dasha filed for divorce.
The couple separated. Natasha, by court decision, stayed with her mother. But Artem is allowed to visit his daughter. He meets Natasha warmly, is involved in her upbringing, and helps her financially. Currently, Artem is prescribed a relationship with Polina Lebedeva. But this is just a novel for now. And no one knows how it will end.
Artem Nikitich Mikhalkov
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Artem Mikhalkov. My hero
Artem Mikhalkov - biography
Artem Mikhalkov is an actor, producer, screenwriter, whose family history is inextricably linked with Russia. His great-great-grandfather is the great Russian painter Vasily Surikov, his great-grandfather is the famous Russian artist Pyotr Konchalovsky, his grandfather is the legendary author of the texts of the country's former and modern anthems, Soviet children's writer and fabulist Sergei Mikhalkov, not to mention his closer living relatives - directors, actors , filmmakers.
Photo: Artem Mikhalkov
The history of the huge, close-knit Mikhalkov-Konchalovsky clan goes back centuries and can be used to make not only a feature film, but a multi-part historical saga.
Star childhood
Artem Mikhalkov, a star child, was born in 1975, on December 8, in the family of an already famous actor and film director and, concurrently, the same star son of Nikita Mikhalkov and no less popular in the fashion world, then still a fashion model and model Tatyana Mikhalkova.
Photo: Artem Mikhalkov with his father Nikita Mikhalkov
From the very birth of the boy, it was clear that his life would be interesting and creative, but it did not promise to be simple. From early childhood, Artem had before his eyes examples of successful activities in the field of cinema of the older generation of the family - his father Nikita Sergeevich and uncle, Andron Konchalovsky, a world-famous director. It is not surprising that at the age of three Artem had already starred in his film “Siberiada”. The next film in which Artem took part was “Dark Eyes” by his father, Nikita Mikhalkov. On the set, the twelve-year-old boy met the great Marcello Mastroianni.
The children in the family were raised quite strictly, without permissiveness, in the spirit of traditional family values. According to Artem himself, from an early age it was difficult for him because he had such a famous surname.
He always felt responsible to his family and experienced some prejudice from his peers, who envied and disliked him. Therefore, he had almost no friends. At first, the boy tried to prove to others that he was just like everyone else, and it was not his fault that he was born into such a famous family. Artem was very worried about this, but at seventeen he began to perceive everything a little differently, deciding to appreciate what was given from birth.
The path to creativity
Artem earned his first money by taking a photo of his father, which was published in the calendar. He also worked as an assistant cameraman at the Three T studio on the filming of several documentaries.
Artem studied at a regular school, after graduating from which he studied at an American college in Italy. A year later, the young man returned to Russia and entered VGIK. The father not only did not help his son, but did not even know about his plans. In his last year at the institute, Artem played a policeman in the film “Two Moons, Three Suns.” There was little creativity in the work, but the young student Mikhalkov received a great schooling, as he had the opportunity to play with such star artists as Ada Rogovtseva and Vladimir Mashkov.
After graduating from VGIK, the young director shot his first short film, “Stop,” whose screening time was only eleven minutes. Despite this, the film did not go unnoticed and received several diplomas from various film festivals. Then Artem began working as an assistant director on the film “The Barber of Siberia,” also playing the role of cadet Buturlin in it. The experience gained on the set undoubtedly came in handy for the young graduate in his future work.
Profession
For twenty years, the younger Mikhalkov’s creative biography already included filming in more than twenty films and TV series. He played many diverse roles: a midshipman in “72 Meters”, a friend of a judoka in the film “The Path”, filmed in the Shaolin Monastery, a cadet in “Burnt by the Sun” and the most important, star role - Stas in the film “The Ninth Company”, directed by - Artem’s close friend, representative of another, no less famous dynasty of filmmakers, Fyodor Bondarchuk. After the role of Stas, fame came to Artem Mikhalkov. All family members, led by the famous Nikita Mikhalkov, came to the premiere of the film. The father, rather stingy with praise, approved of his son’s acting.
Artem Mikhalkov is a participant in many famous and popular TV shows. In 2007, he appeared on screen in the “Circus with the Stars” program, was the host of “Legends of Video Salons” on NTV, and the entertainment show “InterNet” on the STS channel. A little later, he studied Italian in the TV project “Polyglot”. One of his last works on television was participation in the “Ice Age” program, where Artem performed in tandem with a figure skater of amazing energy - Tatyana Navka. With the results of such complex work, requiring not only talent, but also enormous capacity for work, Artem was able to prove that his success was rightfully deserved by himself.
Today, director and actor Artem Mikhalkov has opened his own film company, where he makes documentaries and embodies his creative ideas and fantasies in music videos and commercials. Among the famous works shot by his film group “Lube” is the documentary “Passion for Russia”.
Personal life
Now Artem Mikhalkov is divorced. He met his first wife while still a student. Dasha entered college, and Artem was already studying. The communication did not last long and their connection soon broke off. The second time fate brought them together was on Dasha’s birthday in one of the nightclubs. She never became a student at VGIK, deciding to major in psychology. Feelings flared up again and after a long relationship, Dasha and Artem got married. In 2002, Natasha, a daughter, was born. They lived together for fifteen years and were considered one of the most exemplary families. The unexpected divorce in 2013 was not commented on by the Mikhalkov family, who did not consider it possible to discuss it with representatives of the press. Dasha claimed part of her husband’s income, and Artem complained that he hardly saw the child. The three months allotted for the reconciliation of the spouses did not bring any results, and the couple still divorced.
Photo: Artem Mikhalkov with his wife and daughter
According to rumors, Artem Mikhalkov now has a new lover, designer Polina Lebedeva, with whom he lives together. How this novel will end is anyone's guess. But the Mikhalkov family maintains strong family ties, and Artem himself is very attached to it. He is friendly with his older brother Stepan, the son of Nikita Sergeevich and Anastasia Vertinskaya.
Artem Mikhalkov has achieved a lot, built his own directorial career, shown many diverse talents, is engaged in his favorite interesting work, but viewers and fans hope that he will surprise them more than once with his inexhaustible creative possibilities.
Selected filmography
- 1998 - Two moons, three suns
- 2003 - Plot
- 2009 - The Path
- 2010 - PiraMMMida
- 2011 - Counterplay
- 2011 - Spiritless
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Artem Mikhalkov: “Mikhalkovs are not forgiven for their mistakes”
- How many times have I heard: “Well, it’s clear, you are far from your father...” Yes, I, in fact, am not going to compete with him! “I have my own path in life and in my work,” says the son of the famous director Nikita Mikhalkov. – For some reason, representatives of our family are always under close attention, we are examined almost under a microscope...
– Artem, at one time you hid from your father that you were entering the Institute of Cinematography. Were you afraid that he would start dissuading you?
– Perhaps because we, the Mikhalkovs, have it in our blood. My father himself did not inform his grandfather, Sergei Mikhalkov, where he entered after school, where he joined the army and where he served, until after training he was allowed to write home. He also had a famous surname complex. In my opinion, in the fourth grade, he declared that he was actually the step-son of Sergei Mikhalkov, that he was a foundling who was found somewhere in the ruins... My grandfather never helped my father with anything - he achieved everything himself.
I also wanted to prove my “self”, although my mother, of course, was aware of my plans. I went to VGIK for reconnaissance. And the first person I met there was Philip Yankovsky, who, in my opinion, was already finishing his studies. He took me around the institute, told me everything, showed me everything. It turned out that the course was being taught by a wonderful teacher, director and person, Marlen Martynovich Khutsiev. I started studying and going to auditions. By the way, when my father found out that I was preparing to enter VGIK, he dumbfounded me with the words: “Why do you need this? It’s better to work in my painting, and then you’ll see...” And I, of course, willingly worked for him... But I wasn’t going to change my decision. VGIK has already taken so long that I passed all the exams in one go. I am grateful to Khutsiev for instilling in me the basics of acting and directing, teaching me to approach everything creatively...
However, I think my father taught me a lot even earlier. He worked both at home and on set. While resting, he continued to work and, while working, he rested. Periodically, when I had vacations, he took me on film expeditions.
When he was making the first part of “Burnt by the Sun,” I came to filming in the village of Aksinino, on Nikolina Gora, in Nizhny Novgorod. I was in a group that was making a film about a film. My duties included setting up tripods, changing cassettes, in a word, I was on hand. And in “The Barber of Siberia” I already worked in the group of second directors and starred in the role of cadet Buturlin. Nikita Sergeevich is very demanding on the set, and above all to himself. And even more so to your children. And I think that's right. Because Mikhalkov’s mistakes are not forgiven.
– You created your own. But isn’t it easier to do your projects under the roof of your father’s TriTe studio? After all, you have a dynasty that you can be proud of...
– I cooperate with TriTe. For example, we jointly made a documentary series for Passion for Russia, and I found the source of funding for this project on my own. I had the opportunity to communicate on camera with such legends of Russian culture as Mikhail Ulyanov, Georgy Zhzhenov, Eduard Martsevich and Sergei Petrovich Nikonenko. And in the last episodes, Nikita Mikhalkov acted as our host. Then, already in my company, I made the documentary series “Library of Russian Classics” and the film “The Mystery of the Black Prince” - about the submarine K-324, which in November 1983, being in the Caribbean, essentially prevented the third world war. – Your father served in the navy...
– Yes, only in the Far East... And for many years I dreamed of being in the navy. I remember that I once even found my father’s demobilization uniform in the barn of our country house. The clothes were a lot of work from moths, but I really wanted to try them on! And in this form he showed up in Moscow, in a city apartment. The vigilant concierge did not want to let me in, deciding from my shabby appearance that in front of her was a homeless person. It was very funny! As a result, I had to keep a watch until the evening, guarding the boundaries of our entrance, until relatives appeared on the horizon... I finally got home, but this touching story seems to have left a mark on my soul and inspired me to write my own sea stories - “72 meters” and “The Mystery of the Black Prince.”
It just so happened in my film biography that I “served” in different branches of the military: I was a cadet, a paratrooper and a submariner, and in “Burnt by the Sun 2” I was an infantry cadet, finding myself with my father in the same trench, in the same frame. This was a significant event, because working on camera with a great actor is a colossal learning experience.
– Anastasia Vertinskaya said: when she could no longer cope with her teenage son Stepan, she packed his things and sent him to be raised by his father, Nikita Mikhalkov...
– Yes, I remember well how Stepan appeared with us. But there was a slightly different situation: Nastya and her father had been divorced for a long time. And a boy needs his father nearby. And dad quickly found a common language with Stepan. From an early age, my father took Styopa and me hunting - it was one of the educational moments.
– You have been married for many years, you have a daughter, named Natalya in honor of the famous grandmother... Is your family model similar to the one in which you grew up?
– It seems to me that she is not at all similar. Of course, some kind of genetic background is present in all of us... But Dasha is not like my mother, and I am not at all like my father. And Natasha is not my copy by nature.
– Mikhalkov families traditionally have many children...
- That's for sure! I no longer understand: who is what age, where, who has what children and grandchildren. We have so many relatives...
– Another distinctive feature of the Mikhalkovs is their strong health. It's hardly just a matter of genetics. To be constantly charged for work, you need to draw strength from somewhere...
– The father is a believer, and from his faith he derives fortitude, character, and inflexibility. And through sports, my father maintains enormous physical strength. At the same time, it seems to me that this power was given to him from somewhere above. Such people are born once every thousand years...
– Can you do the same?
- I can, but not like that. It is impossible to be a copy of your father, even if you are his son. Everyone has their own purpose. And this is how God willing!
Tatyana Sekridova, ZN
