''Witnesses '' is a historical drama directed by

Konstantin Fam Konstantin Kong-Takovich Fam (, born 13 July 1972, Pervomayskiy, USSR) is a Ukrainian-born independent director, producer, and screenwriter. His film '' "Shoes"'', a tribute to the memory of Holocaust victims, was the only Russian short movie nomi ...

, consisting of three novellas "

Shoes A shoe is an item of footwear intended to protect and comfort the human foot. Though the human foot can adapt to varied terrains and climate conditions, it is vulnerable, and shoes provide protection. Form was originally tied to function, but ...

", "Brutus" and "

Violin The violin, sometimes referred to as a fiddle, is a wooden chordophone, and is the smallest, and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in regular use in the violin family. Smaller violin-type instruments exist, including the violino picc ...

", united by a common concept and dedicated to the memory of

Holocaust victims Nazi Germany discriminated against and persecuted people on the basis of their race or ethnicity (actual or perceived), religious affiliation, political beliefs, sexual orientation, and, where applicable, mental or physical disabilities. Di ...

. Also known as ''The Trilogy "Witnesses"''.

Concept

The aim of the project is the story of the tragic events of 1933–1945 years and a reminder to the younger generation of the tragedy with the aim of preventing it in the future.

-''This film I dedicate to the memory of their relatives who were killed or went missing during the Second World War, as well as the memory of the six million victims of the Holocaust. I wholeheartedly wish that such a tragedy does not happen again''.

A notable feature of the film is its novel structure and the fact that each of the novels had its own unique stories and history of success on film festivals. "Shoes", "Brutus" and "Violin" - all parts of the film were longlisted for the

Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...

for "Best Live Action Short Film" and became the winners of many Russian and international film festivals.

History of creation

In 2012 it was created the short film "

", dedicated to the memory of the

Holocaust The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...

, which was warmly welcomed by the audience and the festival was a success. The film's director

, decided to develop the idea of "unusual sight" to the Holocaust and to create a full-length film "Witnesses", which in addition to "shoes" will include two more novels - "Brutus" and "Violin". Presentation the Trilogy was held at the 66th

Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Film Festival (; ), until 2003 called the International Film Festival ('), is the most prestigious film festival in the world. Held in Cannes, France, it previews new films of all genres, including documentaries, from all around ...

, which is also under the Short Film Corner, were shown the presentation materials to the novel "Brutus." The producer group the Trilogy includes filmmakers from Russia,

Belarus Belarus, officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Russia to the east and northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Belarus spans an a ...

, Israel and the United States. November 9 at the 34th

American Film Market The American Film Market (AFM) is a film industry event held annually in early November. Historically, more than 7,000 people attend the eight-day annual event to network and to sell, finance, and acquire films. Participants come from more than 7 ...

held a unique special pitching new projects. Film "Witnesses" with the support ROSKINO became the only Russian project, presented at the pitching. The film was created with the financial support of the

Ministry for Culture of Russia Ministry may refer to: Government * Ministry (collective executive), the complete body of government ministers under the leadership of a prime minister * Ministry (government department), a department of a government Religion * Christian mi ...

, as well as private philanthropists.

"Shoes"

"Shoes" The film is the first novel of the Trilogy "Witnesses". The film is set in the 1930s-1940s and tells the story of a pair of women's shoes, which story begins in a shop window and was tragically cut short in a mass grave footwear concentration camp "

Auschwitz Auschwitz, or Oświęcim, was a complex of over 40 concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland (in a portion annexed into Germany in 1939) during World War II and the Holocaust. It consisted of Auschw ...

." In the story "Shoes" is the main character shoes - women's shoes. In the picture is not visible persons and the lack of dialogue. The entire film is accompanied by an original symphonic music. The shooting of the film took place on the territory of Belarus, Poland, Czech Republic and France. The picture was a success of the festival, both in Russia and abroad. The only Russian short film nominated for the

in 2013.

"Brutus"

Events in the film "Brutus" (from a story by Ludvik Ashkenazy) are shown through the dog's eyes. This particular view allows you to see the different human values. War, racial laws, human cruelty have separated a

German shepherd The German Shepherd, also known in Britain as an Alsatian, is a German Dog breed, breed of working dog of medium to large size. The breed was developed by Max von Stephanitz using various Old German herding dogs, traditional German herding dog ...

by the name Brutus with his owner. From kennel it as a watchdog gets to a concentration camp, where in the process of training and

psychological manipulation In psychology, manipulation is defined as an action designed to influence or control another person, usually in an underhanded or subtle manner which facilitates one's personal aims. Methods someone may use to manipulate another person may includ ...

a harmless pet becomes a killer dog. One day Brutus is commanded to chase and kill Jewish escapees, amongst whom he encounters his former owner... There it was reported that the main role in the film can fulfill one of Hollywood actresses, do not hide their Jewish ancestry -

Mila Kunis Milena Markovna "Mila" Kunis (born August 14, 1983) is an American actress. Born in Chernivtsi, Ukraine, and raised in Los Angeles, she was Jackie Burkhart on ''That '70s Show'' (1998–2006) and has voiced Meg Griffin on ''Family Guy'' since ...

and

Natalie Portman Natalie Hershlag{{efn, Some Hebrew sources claim that her birth name was "Neta-Lee Hershleg" ({{langx, he, נטע-לי הרשלג) and later, her first name was Americanized to "Natalie". {{Cite news , last=Shamir , first=Oron , date=August ...

June 27, 2013 "Brutus" won a screenwriting pitching the 35th

Moscow International Film Festival The Moscow International Film Festival (, Transliteration, translit. ''Moskóvskiy myezhdunaródniy kinofyestivál''; abbreviated as MIFF) is a film festival first held in Moscow in 1935 and became regular since 1959. From its inception to ...

and received a grant from the Russian Cinematographers' Union. Of the 418 applications submitted for the competition by the selection committee of the Youth Center made the long list of 22 projects of full-length feature films and television projects and 23 short film project. Special guest and expert Pitching was

Nikita Mikhalkov Nikita Sergeyevich Mikhalkov (; born 21 October 1945) is a Russian filmmaker and actor. He made his directorial debut with the Red Western film ''At Home Among Strangers'' (1974) after appearing in a series of films, including the romantic com ...

. The script for "Brutus" wrote Sergei Rachlin - the first Russian journalist, received the Association of the

Hollywood Foreign Press The Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) was a nonprofit organization of journalists and photographers who reported on the American entertainment industry for predominantly foreign media markets. It is best known for founding and conduc ...

, today - the executive secretary of the award "

Golden Globe The Golden Globe Awards are awards presented for excellence in both international film and television. It is an annual award ceremony held since 1944 to honor artists and professionals and their work. The ceremony is normally held every Januar ...

". Film premiered at the

in June 2016.

"Violin"

World of third novel "Violin" entirely revolves around the unique musical instrument. The third story, "Violin" (from a story by Yossi Tavora) tells about the amazing violin fate, passed through all the horrors of war. The story begins in a violin workshop in Nuremberg, where at the beginning of the 20th century, was created a violin, intended as a gift to the Jewish boy, and ends with a hundred years later concert at the Wailing Wall. Film premiered as part of the competition program of the 39th

in June 2017. It is also longlisted for the

Academy Award for Live Action Short Film The Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film is an award presented at the annual Academy Awards ceremony. The award has existed, under numerous names, since 1957. From 1936 until 1956 there were two separate awards, ''Best Short Subject, On ...

and won the award of the name of Vera Glagoleva in Sochi International Film Awards

Partners

Federation of Jewish Communities of Russia The Federation of Jewish Communities of Russia (FJCR; , ) is a Russian religious organization that unifies communities of Orthodox Judaism, mostly of Chabad Hassidic movement. It was registered by the Russian Ministry of Justice in 1999. Th ...

The feature film about the Holocaust was withdrawn supported by the Federation of Jewish Communities of Russia
/ref> *

Russian Jewish Congress The Russian Jewish Congress is a non-profit charitable fund and Russian Jewish organization. It was established in 1996 by a group of Jewish businessmen, workers and religious figures with the goal of reviving Jewish life in Russia. It unites som ...

* Chabad Odesa * Documentary Film Center * Youth Center of the Union of Cinematographers of the Russian Federation *

ROSKINO Roskino (), formerly Roskomkino (), is a state body representing the Russian industry of audiovisual content on the international markets, a national operator for the promotion of films, series and cartoons as well as the creative potential of Rus ...

References

External links

* * {{IMDb title, 6829438, Witnesses Holocaust films Russian epic films Russian war drama films Russian-language war drama films 2010s Russian films 2010s Russian-language films War epic films Epic films based on actual events Rescue of Jews during the Holocaust Russian World War II films