The legacy and inspiration of Soviet director Sergei Parajanov are at the heart of I will avenge this world with love – S. Parajanova new documentary by director Zara Jian, which premiered at this year's Venice Film Festival.
The Hollywood Reporter got an exclusive look at the film's trailer (see below), in which an impressive lineup of auteur filmmakers, including Atom Egoyan, Tarsem Singh and Emir Kusturica, along with other artists such as exiled Russian actress Chulpan Khamatova, discuss the impact of Parajanov's cinema on their lives and work.
Parajanov, born in Georgia, became a revolutionary force in international cinema with Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors (1965), his first film to reject the officially sanctioned socialist realism of Soviet cinema in favor of a more experimental and poetic visual narrative. Hugely influential on independent and auteur cinema: many of his films, including Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors AND The color of pomegranates (1969) is listed among the greatest films of all time by Sight & Sound magazine: Parajanov was criticized by the Soviet authorities for his personal life (he was bisexual), his films and his political positions, especially his support for Ukrainian nationalism, and was imprisoned twice.
Jian uses the example of Parajanov's life and work to reflect on current geopolitical crises and as inspiration for artists around the world who are oppressed or silenced by those in power.
“My goal was to make a film with heroes from all over the world, to reflect the impact Paradjanov had internationally and over the years, not just during the region and the Soviet era,” Jian said in a statement.
I will avenge this world with love – S. Parajanov will have its world premiere in the Venice Classics section of the 2024 Venice Film Festival.
Watch the exclusive trailer below.