One of the most radical and prolific filmmakers to emerge this decade, Vadim Kostrov arrived in 2021 as if fully formed, with six features, all shot in the director's hometown of Nizhny Tagil, that traveled the festival circuit like a closely held secret. Part documentary, part autofiction, these richly textured and evocative films fuse elements of slow cinema and observational nonfiction into quietly enrapturing meditations on time, light, and landscapes both internal and external. In 2022, Kostrov left Russia for Paris in protest of the war in Ukraine, but his workrate has remained steady as he continues to push his political, experimental, and diaristic impulses to new extremes. Tonight's program includes two standout features from Kostrov's seasons tetralogy.
Summer (Dir. Vadim Kostrov, 2021, 109 min)
Set in Nizhny Tagil, Summer journeys nostalgically through the warm middle-Ural summer with eight-year-old Vadim and his half-sister Christina. They enjoy evening festivities with their older teenage friends by the fire, go on mellow skateboard rides, and have a quiet daytime nap in the garden house. Caressed by the sun and the warmth of his relatives, hidden in the quiet tranquillity of the garden and far away from the cruelty of the outside world, Vadim enjoys his childhood days. Acting as a serene lullaby that mimics the movements of a gentle breeze, Summer provides warmth, joy and solace, offering hope and strength for the future.
Fall (Dir. Vadim Kostrov, 2022, 99 min)
An Ural city of Nizhny Tagil. Summer is over and a ten years old Vadim is moving to a new district and attends a new school. The last warm days of September. Vadim is making his way through the fading rays of the autumn sun.
TRT: 208 min
In person: Vadim Kostrov
"The wunderkind of contemporary Russian cinema." —Geoffrey Macnab, Business Doc Europe
“Summer is sitting silently next to someone under the sun, watching as the water evaporates off your arms in real time.” —Matt Turner, Nonlinearities
“Like [Kostrov's] previous seasonal films, Fall immerses you in a calm, ASMR-like experience, where time feels as if it’s being stretched and savored.” —Simran Hans, Film Comment
“Summer captures the gauziness of our memories of childhood summers—moments that feel more like impressions than properly unfolding experiences.” —Christopher Small, Cinema Scope
"Fall transforms the everyday into a poetic exploration of past and present, memory and meaning, through a lens that captures the essence of solitude and nostalgia." —Krystof Koctar, Modern Times Review
(Available to download after screening date)