The exclusive teaser trailer for Alexander Rodnyansky’s documentary “Notes of a True Criminal,” which premieres out of competition at the Venice Film Festival today, debuts here.
The film, helmed with Andriy Alferov, marks Rodnyansky’s return to directing after a 31-year hiatus. Rodnyansky’s producer credits include Oscar nominated films “Leviathan” and “Loveless,” Cannes award-winner “Beanpole,” and László Nemes’ “Orphan,” which also premiered at Venice this year.
Born in Kyiv, Rodnyansky was sentenced in absentia by a Russian court to 8.5 years in prison for his anti-war stance.
In his film, Rodnyansky contemplates key events in Ukraine’s history and how they have affected him and his family: the referendum on Ukraine’s independence, the mass execution of Jews at Babyn Yar, Chernobyl, the collapse of the Soviet Union, the withdrawal of Soviet troops from Germany, and, of course, the war—the full-scale invasion by the Russian army, which began on Feb. 24, 2022.
Rodnyansky’s narrative is not focused on the events themselves but on the people, human destinies, and art. He uses footage from his own documentaries and those of his family members to tell a new and deeply human story.
In a statement, Rodnyansky said: “’Notes of a True Criminal’ is my personal attempt to place the current war in Ukraine within a broader and more intimate context. Together with the remarkable Ukrainian film critic Andriy Alferov, we filmed several stories from today’s bloody war in Ukraine, and combined them with what I had shot in the 1980s and 1990s of the last century.
“In this film, I portray war as a persistent curse — one that has shaped not only my own life, but the lives of my children, my parents, and my grandparents. It is a story of unending conflict — and of a deep, enduring hope that one day, the war will, finally, end.”
The production company is AR Content. International sales are being handled by Cinephil.
The screenplay is by Rodnyansky; music is by Evgueni Galperine; the cinematographers are Oleksandr Boyko, Vadym Loshak and Denys Melnyk; the editor is Nazim Kadri-Zade; and sound is by Volodymyr Lysenko and Vitaly Harkavyi.
