Aleksandr Sokourov

Director, Screenwriter, Director of Photography

Russia

Birth : 14 June 1951 (Podorvikha, Oblast d'Irkoutsk, Russie)

Career : 47 years

Age : 73 years

Aleksandr Sokurov is a Russian filmmaker renowned for his unique artistic approach and profound reflections on power and history. A history graduate, he began his career directing television films and documentaries before studying at VGIK, the renowned Soviet film school.

His early films were banned in the USSR, but he later achieved international fame with works such as "Mother and Son" and "Russian Ark." His tetralogy on figures of power, including "Moloch", "Taurus", "The Sun", and "Faust", was widely acclaimed, the latter winning the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival in 2011.

PRESENCES AT THE JURY

Biography

Born in 1951 in Podorvikha, Russia, Aleksandr Sokurov initially studied history before turning to film. He directed several television films and documentaries, then continued his studies at the State Institute of Cinematography (VGIK) in Moscow. During the Soviet era, his works were often censored and banned.His first feature film, "The Lonely Voice of Man" (1978), was banned in the USSR but won the Bronze Leopard at the 1987 Locarno Film Festival. Sokurov went on to direct films exploring human relationships, including the award-winning "Mother and Son" (1997). In 2002, he impressed with "Russian Ark", a single-take film shot at the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg.His tetralogy on power examines the figures of Adolf Hitler in "Moloch" (1999), Lenin in "Taurus" (2001), Emperor Hirohito in "The Sun" (2005), and concludes with "Faust" (2011), which won the Golden Lion at Venice. In 2017, the European Film Academy awarded him a Lifetime Achievement Award.