Kantemir Balagov

Kantemir Arturovich Balagov (Russian: Кантеми́р Арту́рович Бала́гов; born 28 July 1991) is a Russian film director, screenwriter and cinematographer of Circassian origin. He has directed the films Closeness (2017) and Beanpole (2019).

In this Eastern Slavic name, the patronymic is Arturovich and the family name is Balagov.

Biography

Kantemir was born in Nalchik, Kabardino-Balkarian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, RSFSR, in the final year of the Soviet Union, in a family unrelated to cinema.[1][2] His mother is a teacher of chemistry and biology, she works as a head teacher at a local school, while his father is a local entrepreneur.[3]

Since childhood, Kantemir watched a lot of mainstream movies, and at the age of 18 began to create his own small videos. Then, together with friends in Nalchik, he shot an Internet series with episodes of 10 minutes each. He didn't originally plan to pursue a career as a filmmaker, but decided to apply for the cinema workshop, led by Alexander Sokurov at Kabardino-Balkarian State University in Nalchik. Kantemir missed the deadline to enter the university as a freshman, but still wrote to Sokurov, asking to consider his application. He eventually got accepted to the workshop as a third-year student. As a result, he graduated from university on the course of the creative workshop of Alexander Sokurov.

During his studies, he made several fiction and documentary films.[4] Some of Balagov's short films were shown at the 67th Locarno Film Festival.[5] In 2017, he made his debut as a director with the feature film Closeness in the program Un Certain Regard at the Cannes Film Festival, where he received the prize FIPRESCI.[6][7][8] In 2017, he was awarded the GQ Russia Prize in the category Discovery of the Year.[9]

In 2019, Balagov received the Cannes Best Director Award and FIPRESCI prize for the film Beanpole, which was presented in the program Un Certain Regard.[10][11] Beanpole was Russia's entry for Best International Feature Film at the 92nd Academy Awards, making the December shortlist.[12]

In 2021, it was revealed that Balagov will direct the pilot for the television adaptation of the video game The Last of Us.[13]

References
  1. Kantemir Balagov at the Festival de Cannes
  2. Kantemir Balagov at the Locarno Festival
  3. Anisimova, Elena (25 July 2017). "Знакомьтесь, Кантемир Балагов — будущее российского кино (он уже выиграл в Каннах)" [Meet Kantemir Balagov - the future of Russian cinema (he has already won in Cannes)]. Sobaka.ru (in Russian).
  4. Кантемир Балагов. ПрофиСинема. [Kantemir Balagov]. ProfiCinema.ru (in Russian).
  5. Kabardino-Balkarian State University: Aleksandr Sokurov Teaching Cinema
  6. Dolin, Anton (25 May 2017). "«Теснота» Кантемира Балагова: ученик Сокурова снял фильм о еврейской семье на Кавказе в 1990-е. И покорил Канны!" [“Cramped” by Kantemir Balagov: a student of Sokurov made a film about a Jewish family in the Caucasus in the 1990s And conquered Cannes!]. Meduza (in Russian).
  7. "«Теснота» Кантемира Балагова получила приз ФИПРЕССИ в Каннах. Это фильм о жизни еврейской семьи в Нальчике в 1990-е" [The "tightness" of Cantemir Balagov received the FIPRESCI prize in Cannes. This is a film about the life of a Jewish family in Nalchik in the 1990s]. Meduza. 27 May 2017.
  8. "Запредельно близко: «Теснота» как главный российский кинодебют года" [Extremely close: "Tightness" as the main Russian film debut of the year]. Wonderzine.com. 21 July 2017.
  9. Smolina, Yelena (13 September 2017). "Открытие года 2017: Кантемир Балагов" [Opening of the year 2017: Kantemir Balagov]. GQ Russia.
  10. Un Certain Regard 2019 prizes
  11. "Российский режиссёр Кантемир Балагов получил вторую награду в Каннах" [Russian director Kantemir Balagov received the second award in Cannes]. Novaya Gazeta. 25 May 2019.
  12. "Russia's Beanpole Shortlisted For Oscar's Best International Film". RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty. 17 December 2019. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
  13. "'Last of Us' HBO Series Finds Director (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. 15 January 2021. Retrieved 15 January 2021.
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