The drama Arrhythmia, too, will fight for the Crystal Globe this year. It was presented by a delegation led by the director Boris Khlebnikov and the screenwriter Natalia Meshchaninova.
Khlebnikov first came to the Karlovy Vary Festival already in 2003 and this time he brought to the main competition an accurate study of the relationship between Oleg, a paramedic, and his wife Katya, who is a doctor, too. The drama does not focus solely on the relationship issues the central couple ran into, but it also shows the profession of a paramedic.
“We were fascinated by the fact that paramedics always need to make decisions,” the screenwriter said. I think that your profession is the continuation of your life, so you should choose a profession which will make you happy. I did not want to depict heroism, morality or ethics in the film, I wanted to depict the way we try to live in line with our professions and are unable to live differently. The main character did not intend to protest or act against the system,” said the director.
Khlebnikov does not consider himself a rebel, either, however he realizes that his work implies a higher level of engagement: “As a director, I am a bit more affected by social issues than our main character, who is a commoner and has in this sense more freedom.”
The filmmaker picked for the main role his favourite Alexander Yatsenko who is supported by charming Irina Gorbacheva as Katya. “Sasha is a great artist. I work with him as with a co-author. The character he creates is always richer than I imagined. Moreover, Sasha is unique because he does not take a different identity, he shows himself in the films. From his point of view, all films are documentaries.” the director appreciated their cooperation.
