In total, 47 applications from local film producers were received for the competition to receive support from the foundation. Instead of the planned 5 million rubles this year, the total amount of support will be 9.6 million, participants will receive differents sums, from two hundred thousand to five million rubles.
The selection criteria, as in the previous year, were the potential impact of the work on the development of the Republic and the sphere of cinema and animation, as well as the prospects for successful export of manufactured products to foreign markets in relation to Yakutia. Also, the basic principle of "Sinet Sakhawood" is not providing the support to those producers who have already received funding from the fund and have not completed the declared work.
The animated film "Kulunchuktar" by Duolan and Aisen Luginovs and the documentary project "Tuoy-Haya" by Anastasia Borisova will receive two hundred thousand each. Tamara Obutova's international documentary project "Kate Marsden. Apokatastasis" and Mikhail Lukachevsky's drama "Helicopter" will receive gratuitous support of 500 thousand rubles. The fund allocates one million rubles each to the films "Sarsynyny Syrsa" by Stepan Burnashev and "Star" by Nyurgun Ivanov. Konstantin Timofeev's melodrama "Lookout and Nyurguhun" will receive gratuitous support of one million two hundred thousand. And the sum of five million rubles in the form of venture financing will be provided immediately for two projects of Dmitry Davydov "Fly Catcher" and "Chicken Nest". The difference between venture financing and gratuitous support is that in case of significant commercial success, the filmmakers will make percentage deductions from their income to the Sinet Sakhawood fund for further support of other Yakutian film producers, without incurring any financial risks. This is an interesting experiment that in the future may help to create a mechanism for cross-financing the Yakutian film industry for its further development.
About film projects and directors supported by the foundation
Dmitry Davydov is the most successful director of Yakutia. Last year, he also received one million rubles from Sakhawood and in a short time shot The “Scarecrow”, which became the first film from Yakutia to take part in Kinotavr. The film returned to its homeland with a triumph — the main prize of the film festival, the prize of film critics and for the best female role.
Six years ago, the director of the Chapchylgan Secondary School sold a car, borrowed money and in two weeks shot the drama "Bonfire in the Wind", which conquered the world cinema community. Then there was the equally talented "There is no god but me" and in 2020 - "Scarecrow".
Awarding the winners of "Sinet Sakhawood" in 2019
With funds from Sinet Sakhawood, he will shoot two films at once. The dramedy "The Fly Catcher" tells the story of a 40-year-old man Vasily, who left for the city in his youth to seek happiness. But didn't find it. For more than 20 years, he lived in the city merrily, went to restaurants, drank, messed around in different places, never learned, all he wanted was fast money. He got married, had children, got divorced. Now he is paying alimony, having debts, without normal work experience, without savings. And, in fact, without the meaning of life. And so he decides to give up everything and return to the village.
The second picture is already a comedy "Chicken Nest". In the distant Alas (district), a lonely old man lives near the forest. His teenage grandson comes to him for the summer holidays. The grandson arrives dissatisfied: he will be bored here. That's what he thinks. But this time it will be different.
Director Konstantin Timofeev is known to the Yakutian people as one of the first clip makers (he shot about 60 clips), the author of the film "Hara Bekir" ("Black Demon") and the film adaptation of everyone's favorite fairy tale "Beyberikeen". Last year, he also won the Sakhawood Grant and directed the continuation of the fairy tale story. The film has been ready for a long time, but due to the pandemic, the premiere was postponed. This year he will shoot the eternal love story "Lookout and Nyurguhun".
Director Stepan Burnashev has released 8 feature films and 9 documentaries for eleven years in cinema. Among the most famous — "Setteh sir. Yyaah", "Mannaigy taptal", "Atyn oloh", "Republic Z", "Kuruyeh".
This time he will take up the family drama "Sarsynyny Syrsa" ("In pursuit of tomorrow"). A married couple who have lived together for 10 years decides to divorce. The division of property and the divorce process itself take place without scandals. They both understand that divorce is the only way out of a failed marriage, where each of them believes that they have not fully realized their capabilities and that divorce will give an impulse to a new life and forgotten dreams. But only after the divorce they realize that it was all just an illusion and in fact the problem was not in marriage…
Producer Nyurgun Ivanov began working in cinema in 2005 with the filming of the film "Shores of Hope" with the famous Yakutian rapper Gosha Vasiliev - Jeedda. Since then, he has produced about seven successful Yakutian films. Last year, he also received support for the postproduction of "Private Chaerin". The film has been ready for distribution for a long time. This year he will present the project "Star". This is a story about young travelers led by a famous blogger. They find an abandoned military facility in the remote Yakutian taiga and unwittingly become participants in a mystical experiment that is dangerous for their lives.
Director Mikhail Lukachevsky is known outside Yakutia for arthouse films such as "The Road", "White Day", "Taayyman taptaly".
This year he plans to complete the action-packed drama "Helicopter", which he considers the best of his works. He spent five years of his life on it: filming began back in 2015 in the Verkhoyansky district. These days, there is only post-production: color correction, sound, etc. Starring: Roman Atlasov and Gavril Menkyarov. The movie is based on real events.
The film reveals the problems of northern settlements where people who are completely dependent on nature live. The main character’ child suddenly gets ill, and he is forced to walk to the district center for help. He overcomes dangerous rivers, mountains and forests only thanks to the steadfastness of character, the accumulated wisdom of his ancestors on survival in extreme conditions.
The powerful but beautiful northern nature surrounding us and the strong-minded northern man who has remained with it alone, who preserves the culture and traditions of his people, is real, sincere, worthy — the filmmakers want to convey this theme to the moviegoers of the country.
Documentary projects
Actress Tamara Obutova presents the international project "Kate Marsden. Apocatastasis". The story is about an English woman Kate Marsden, who in the XIX century went from Britain to Yakutia to find a cure for leprosy — a medicinal herb growing in the Yakutian taiga.
Every era has its own terrible diseases, as evidenced by the current situation with COVID-19. And every era needs heroes. Who is really Kate Marsden, who went to distant Yakutia in search of a life-saving herb?
In search of an answer to this question, following in the footsteps of the legendary Kate Marsden, at the invitation of ARKTIKFILM, the famous British traveler Felicity Aston, who alone conquered Antarctica, goes to Yakutia to restore the history of this incredible journey more than a century later, and perhaps the good name of the sister of mercy, who was slandered at one time.
Bit by bit restoring the mysterious image of Marsden, Felicity not only finds answers, but also discovers Yakutia for herself and the world.
Anastasia Borisova is making a film about the events of 1967, when the Vilyuiskaya hydroelectric power station completely flooded the Evenk hunting village of Tuoi-Haya. More than 500 residents were left without a homeland. During the relocation, the authorities promised comfortable housing, material assistance and money compensation in the new place. But people didn't get anything, they were deceived. Every year there are fewer and fewer of them (about 200 people). While the eyewitnesses are alive, the creators of the picture want to make a documentary and give them a voice. With this film, the internally displaced persons and the project team are calling for such a tragedy to never be repeated anywhere.
The project has already won a grant from the President of the Russian Federation, but this amount is not enough for a full movie production, as the authors of the project commented.
Animation project
18-year-old Duolan and 15-year-old Aisen Luginovs, with the support of their family, shot five episodes of "Kulunchuktar", which many Yakutians have already fallen in love with. Sinet Sakhawood will provide them with a donation of 200 thousand rubles for the purchase of a more powerful computer for further work.
The animated series shows the everyday life of an ordinary Yakutian family of the Alasovs. The main characters are twin foals Saryal and Sardaan. They are 3.5 years old. In the cartoon, foals discover and study the world around them, play, go to nature, communicate with other children.
We wish further success to all filmmakers and animators of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia)!
* "Sinet Sakhawood - is a private non-profit foundation for the support of Yakutian cinema and animation, working among the projects of the Sinet Team for the development of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia). The foundation's activities are aimed at supporting Yakutian films and animations that motivate development or have export potential as Yakutian intellectual products. Despite the successes and increasingly growing popularity of Yakutian cinema, which is often called a unique phenomenon, today single projects receive support. We hope that the activities of "Sinet Sakhawood" will give impetus to an increase in state, business and public support for Yakut cinema.