Otar Ioseliani, director: biography with photo

Otar Ioseliani is a director who removes refined, ironic, intellectual films. His work is hardly familiar to a wide circle of young spectators, his tapes rarely gather full rooms, but he has an army of fans around the world. He belongs to the generation of the sixties, but the modern tapes of Ioseliani are relevant and in demand.

The beginning of the way

Otar Ioseliani, whose biography is now in all the film encyclopedia, was born in Tbilisi (then Tiflis) on February 2, 1934. His father was a royal officer, mother was educated at the Institute of Noble Maidens. Since childhood, Otar spoke several languages, went to music school, he recalled that he was fortunate enough to absorb the culture of old times. When Otar was very young, his father was repressed, and the boy was brought up by women: mother, grandmother and aunt. In 1952 he graduated from the music school in violin and conducting classes. The director told that one of his strongest youthful impressions was for him the films of John Ford, René Claire. Then he realized that cinema is a very serious matter, but he has not tried this profession yet.

Comprehension of profession

After school Otar goes to Moscow and enters the Moscow State University at the Faculty of Mechanics and Mathematics. He studied there for three years. But one day during a visit to a military plant, he realizes that he wants to do something more peaceful and withdraws from Moscow State University. So Ioseliani, the director of God, begins a new path. He withstood a huge competition and entered the VGIK at the course of AP Dovzhenko and ME Chiaureli, where he studied until 1961. Masters not only passed the secrets of the profession, but also shaped the worldview of students. Ioseliani already from the student's bench was distinguished by great independence of views and free-thinking.

First works

Already in his student work, Otar Ioseliani, a student director, was trying to put in a deep philosophical idea. Even in the documentary films he showed himself as a deeply feeling and philosophizing author. In his first documentary film "Sapovnela" the director shows the future distinctive features of his work: musicality, spirituality of nature. His thesis "April" caused a big scandal, as anti-Soviet motives were present in it, the commission said that the characters (the young man and the girl) behave immorally, the film was almost pornographic. Although in it Ioseliani in a symbolic form tried to convey a simple truth about the fact that love must be protected from the burdens of life that can kill feelings. He had to shoot a documentary film "Cast Iron", for this he worked for a year at a metallurgical plant. So began the difficult path of Ioseliani in the profession.

Atmosphere of stuffiness

At the end of VGIK Ioseliani, the director whose biography was so difficult, began to look for an opportunity to work by profession. He manages to release two short films: "Watercolor" and the ill-fated "April". But he has been going to great work for a long time, and only in 1968 his first full-length tape "Listopad" was released. The picture is difficult to release on the screens, censorship clings to various trifles, putting forward ridiculous accusations. But still the tape came out, and for her young director received a prize in Cannes and a prize from the French Film Academy. Georges Sadul "For the best debut".

The next picture of Otar Ioseliani was the documentary "Ancient Georgian Song" about the ancient vocal art of Georgia - polyphony. But he was not allowed to censor, the film lay on the shelf for many decades. The director removes the play picture "There was a songbird thrush", which is also very long and difficult to take the art council. The author is accused of anti-Soviet sentiments, in that he shows an atypical hero for the Soviet state. This philosophical tape is a model of the already formed artistic manner of Ioseliani. In the film, there is almost no dynamics, landscapes, still lifes are accompanied by incomparable Georgian music. The meaning is born not from words and actions, but from the composition of the film. "Pastoral" was recognized as alien to Soviet cinema and was banned. The director was no longer allowed to film, he spent 7 years without work, life became unbearable.

Emigration

Otar Ioseliani, director, freedom-loving man, was for the Soviet intelligentsia the embodiment of the spirit of freedom, his films were cult, although few saw them. But the filmmaker himself was very difficult to live, he wanted to work, and he had no such opportunity. Ioseliani was close friends with Sergei Dovlatov, who by that time had long lived in the United States. Another of his close friends, Vladimir Vysotsky, died, including because of the inability to live freely. Good friends Otar - Joseph Brodsky and Mikhail Baryshnikov - also have already left for the USA. Ioseliani was in such a situation that, apart from emigration, he did not have a way in life. He had to give up either from the Motherland or from himself. But he leaves without a demonstrative break with the country. Ioseliani advances the cause of a personal nature and without a sensation leaves for France.

Work in France

Near Paris Otar Ioseliani, whose filmography has so far consisted of only three feature films, removes the picture "Favorites of the Moon", which he conceived in Georgia. The film proves to be very successful, it receives the prize of the Venetian Festival and the great recognition of the European public. So the new successful life of the director begins. Now he regularly removes the tapes "And the Light" and "Hunting for Butterflies" together with the "Favorites" made up the gold fund of Ioseliani. In total, in France, he shoots six films that have passed with different success around the world.

Return

In 2006 Otar Ioseliani, whose biography makes a circle and returns it to his homeland, begins to make films with the participation of Russian producers. He increasingly comes to the Motherland, participates in festivals, gives interviews. There is a kind of return, although Ioseliani continues to live more in France. But now he is again called a Georgian director. In the international team, he shoots several new films: "Gardens in Autumn", "Chantrap", "Winter Song", in which he appears as a mature master with his unique vision of the world. They are full of deep symbolism and metaphors. The artist over the years increasingly departs from the plot in the direction of associations and hints. These tapes were presented to the premiere show in Georgia and Russia, they received several prizes at European festivals.

Best Movies

Otar Ioseliani, the director, whose name is known to fans of quality European cinema around the world, shot only 12 films in 40 years. But the quality of his filmography is very high, among his legacy there are no failures. In each tape, he moves steadily towards the crystallization of his artistic method. Therefore, choosing the best pictures in his legacy is not easy. There are critics who distinguish the "golden" period of Ioseliani and refer to it three works: "Favorites of the Moon", "And there was light" and "Hunting for butterflies". Some film experts say that the real Ioseliani appeared in the trilogy "Truth in wine", "Monday morning" and "Gardens in the autumn". Anyway, for each viewer, the Master has his own film, which can become a favorite and the best.

Awards

Otar Ioseliani is a director who is not spoiled by the official recognition of the authorities of any of the three countries in which he worked. However, it is a sin to complain, because he has a huge collection of awards and prizes from various festivals. For his 12 works, he received more than 20 awards. Among them are such prestigious prizes as FIPRESCI at the Cannes Film Festival, awards at the Venice, Berlin, Moscow Film Festivals. He is the owner of the awards "Felix", "Nika", "Golden Aries", the name of J. Sadoul, "The Golden Knight", the Ministry of Culture of Italy, the Locarno film festival "For the contribution to cinema". Ioseliani always takes a low regard for praise, saying that he simply did what he could.

Ioseliani today

To date Otar Ioseliani, the director, whose films have become part of the gold fund of world cinema, is a living classic. His name is placed next to the names of Buñuel, Godard, Parajanov. He spent his entire life gracefully departing from criticizing political systems, although he is not a supporter of either the capitalist or communist model of the state. He is a singer of freedom and simplicity. However, the pain for his homeland sometimes breaks through in his films, and he does not manage to completely get out of politics. So, in the tape "Georgia One", he could not refrain from accusing the Soviet authorities. But today Ioseliani goes into deep symbolism and tries to escape from everyday realities, his path is a philosophical reflection on the eternal.

The director continues to live in France, but often in Georgia, where he had relatives. His family, he never did, although there were legends about his many novels.