Roman Volobuev
Born
Roman Olegovich Volobuev

(1977-07-31) July 31, 1977
Moscow, Soviet Union
Occupation(s)Film director, screenwriter, producer
Years active2014–present

Roman Olegovich Volobuev (Russian: Роман Олегович Волобуев; born July 31, 1977) is a Russian film and television director, writer, producer, and former film critic. Volobuev is best known for his 8-year tenure as film reviewer at Afisha magazine and for writing and directing TV series The Last Minister and Just Imagine Things We Know.

Early life and media career

Born and raised in Moscow, Volobuev briefly worked as an investigative reporter at Obshaya Gazeta[1] before starting to write film reviews for the Russian edition of Première magazine, Izvestia, Vedomosti and Iskusstvo Kino and in 2004 became a film section editor at Afisha.[2] He also served as founding editor-in-chief of the short-lived Russian edition of Empire film magazine in 2007[3] and as deputy editor of GQ Russia in 2012.[4]

Film an TV career

In 2013, Volobuev and his co-writer Lena Vanina developed a political comedy series Zavtra (Tomorrow) about Russian liberal opposition winning presidential election[5] for an independent cable news station TV Rain. Only pilot episode was produced, since TV Rain ran into political and financial troubles[6] and could no longer finance the show.[7] Volobuev's debut feature film The Cold Front (2016) a chamber mystery drama shot in Normandy was met with mostly lukewarm reviews[8] and failed at the Russian box-office. His second film a satirical action comedy Blokbaster (2017) fared much better with critics[9] and received the Special Jury Prize at Kinotavr film festival,[10] but was disowned by Volobuev after a public spat with producers over the final cut.[11] He eventually found a mainstream success with the black political comedy TV series The Last Minister and a 4-part mini-series about Moscow media industry Just Imagine Things We Know both released in 2020. Volobuev also co-wrote a post-apocalyptic drama series Survivors (2021) and appeared as an actor in Valeriya Gai Germanika's Brief Guide To A Happy Life (2011), Boris Khlebnikov's Hot and Bothered (2015) and Konstantin Bogomolov's A Good Man (2020).

In 2022 Volobuev condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine[12] and emigrated from Russia, effectively ending his local film career.

In 2023 he directed “Riot Days”[13] an hour-long concert film featuring a live performance by the feminist art collective Pussy Riot. [14]

Political views

Volobuev is highly critical of Russian authorities, once calling modern Russia "an authoritarian state with good Wi-Fi and a nice urban planning".[15] He was a vocal supporter of Snow Revolution and has been detained during street protests in Moscow in 2012.[16][17]

In 2018, after the arrest of the fellow director Kirill Serebrennikov he publicly urged Russian filmmakers to stop applying for funding from Russia's Ministry of Culture.[18]

In 2022, in a manifesto[19] explaining his decision to stop working in Russia after its invasion of Ukraine he compared moral choices Russian filmmakers currently face to the ones German filmmakers faced under Hitler.

Filmography

Source: Kinopoisk[20]

Feature films

Year Film Credited as
Director Writer Editor Producer
2016 The Cold Front Yes Yes Yes No
2017 Blokbaster Yes Yes Yes No
Middleground No No Yes Yes
2023 The White List No Yes Yes Yes
Riot Days Yes No Yes Yes

Television

Year Title Credited as Notes
Director Writer Editor
2014 Zavtra Yes Yes Yes Pilot
2020–2022 The Last Minister Yes Yes No 31 episodes
2020 Just Imagine Things We Know Yes Yes No 4 episodes
2021 Survivors No Yes No 3 episodes
Okayannie Dni Yes No No 1 episode
2022 Aurora Yes Yes No 8 episodes

Bibliography

  • 500 фильмов изменивших мир (500 films that changed the word). 2006, Afisha Industries. 432 pages. ISBN 5-91151-001-4.

References

  1. ↑ "Кинокритик Роман Волобуев устроился в GQ". Ведомости (in Russian). Retrieved 2021-11-14.
  2. ↑ "DOKer | Roman Volobuev". doker-eng. Retrieved 2021-11-14.
  3. ↑ "Роман Волобуев | Time Out" (in Russian). Retrieved 2021-11-14.
  4. ↑ "Роман Волобуев стал заместителем главного редактора GQ". lenta.ru. Retrieved 2021-11-14.
  5. ↑ Idov, Michael (2016-01-07). "My Accidental Career as a Russian Screenwriter". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-03-02.
  6. ↑ "Russian liberal TV channel forced to quit premises". BBC News. 2014-12-08. Retrieved 2022-03-02.
  7. ↑ "Satirists seek crowdfunding to kickstart political comedy in Putin's Russia". the Guardian. 2015-03-06. Retrieved 2022-03-02.
  8. ↑ "KinoKultura". www.kinokultura.com. Retrieved 2021-11-14.
  9. ↑ ""Блокбастер": Непрокатная версия". Журнал «Сеанс». Retrieved 2021-11-14.
  10. ↑ "Kinotavr 2017: Prizes and Winners :: Russia-InfoCentre". russia-ic.com. Retrieved 2021-11-14.
  11. ↑ "KinoKultura". www.kinokultura.com. Retrieved 2021-11-14.
  12. ↑ ""Shame for the Insane Tyrant": How Liberal Russians Are Reacting to Putin's War With Ukraine". Slate. 24 February 2022. Retrieved 2022-03-22.
  13. ↑ Volobuev, Roman (2023-09-14), Riot Days (Musical), Mariya Alyokhina, Olga Borisova, Diana Burkot, Artbox, Vnezapie Filmworks, retrieved 2023-11-26
  14. ↑ "«Нам говорят: "Нахуя ты на Геббельса работал?" А мы: "Вы не понима-а-аете, там все сложнее!"»". «Холод» (in Russian). 2023-09-14. Retrieved 2023-11-26.
  15. ↑ ""Последний министр": Роман Волобуев — о том, как сделать политический сериал в стране без политики". The Village (in Russian). Retrieved 2022-03-25.
  16. ↑ Idov, Michael (2018). Dressed Up for a Riot: Misadventures in Putin's Moscow. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux. p. 152. ISBN 978-0374223151.
  17. ↑ "В центре Москвы задержаны Собчак и Навальный". DELFI. Retrieved 2022-03-25.
  18. ↑ Пономарёва, Аля (19 April 2018). "Снизу постучал Мединский. Соцсети о продлении срока Серебренникову". Радио Свобода (in Russian). Retrieved 2022-03-25.
  19. ↑ ""Сегодня ценность написанного, спетого, снятого на русском определяется тем, заведено ли на автора уголовное дело" Режиссер Роман Волобуев — о войне. И о том, почему культура оказалась бессильна". Meduza (in Russian). Retrieved 2022-11-11.
  20. ↑ "Роман Волобуев, 1977 — Сценарист". Кинопоиск. Retrieved 2021-11-14.
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