euro|topics - Nikolaj Nikitin

22/11/2008

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Nikitin, Nikolaj

2 articles of this author have been cited in the European Press Review so far.

die tageszeitung - Germany | 29/05/2007

A breath of fresh air has floated through Cannes

According to Nikolaj Nikitin, a film expert specialised in Eastern European cinema, talk of a Romanian "Nouvelle vague" is not exaggerated. In an interview with Ekkehard Knörer he explains what the new films of the "Bucharest School" - to which not only Cannes winner Cristian Mungiu but also Cristi Puiu, Corneliu Porumboiu and Cristian Nemescu belong - have in common from the point of view of their aesthetics. "This is of course far removed from the US commercial films and closer to the films of John Casavetes, the early Godard films and the documentary Cinema Vérité. The actors play a vital role because the camera always follows them very closely. In fact the camera work is generally crucial for the aesthetic quality of these films. Oleg Mutu, who was also the cameraman for [Cristi Puiu's] 'Death of Mr. Lazarescu', filmed virtually everything in '4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days' by hand. The result is very direct images that stay with you for a long time."

Frankfurter Rundschau - Germany | 28/03/2007

The new langauge of Eastern European films

In an interview with Volker Mazassek on the occasion of the Go East festival of Eastern European film in Wiesbaden, Nikolaj Nikitin, a member of the Festival's selection committee, stresses the poor conditions filmmakers in Eastern Europe have to contend with. He points out that they urgently need technical and financial support from the West. He also talks of the new language being used in films by Eastern European directors: "It used to be that most films written and directed by the same person were inaccessible for audiences that are used to Western cinema. Or directors working under the old regimes had to use historical themes because censorship was too strong. But it's not the film language that distinguishes these films. The great strength of Eastern European directors is their themes, which have the power to move audiences. Look at Grbavica, which is about the mass rape of women during war, and what the success of the film [which won the Golden Bear at the 2006 Berlinale] has achieved in political terms. It's been years since a politician has been able to make such an impact."

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