“Is it easy to be young?” ( Latvian “Vai viegli būt jaunam?” ) Is a Latvian Soviet documentary in 1986 directed by Juris Podnieks . The film tells about the problems of Soviet youth since the beginning of Perestroika .
| Is it easy to be young? | |
|---|---|
| Vai viegli būt jaunam? | |
 | |
| Genre | documentary |
| Producer | Juris Podnieks |
| Author script | Abrams Kleskins , Juris Podnieks |
| Operator | Kalvis Salzmanis |
| Composer | Martins Browns |
| Film company | Riga film studio |
| Duration | 83 minutes |
| A country |  the USSR |
| Tongue | Latvian / Russian |
| Year | 1986 |
| IMDb | ID 0126711 |
The film premiered on January 17, 1987 in Moscow , and on January 26 in Riga [1] . The film caused a resonance in society. It was purchased by television companies of dozens of countries, has domestic and foreign awards.
The expression “Is it easy to be young?” Became winged [2] .
Content
Story
The film tells about the problems of young people in the mid -80s , about their conflicts with parents and society, about finding themselves and the meaning of life, about their desires and dreams.
The film begins with the filming of a rock concert and is interspersed with shots of the trial of teenagers who smashed several cars upon returning home from this concert. Then the young man, who keeps an honorable watch at the monument to the Latvian arrows , discusses the lack of ideas now, for which one needs to live and fight, and about the "ossification" of society. Young punk voices the assumption that they - punks and metallers , are generated by society itself with its duplicity. Young people go into these movements in order to get away from everyday life and play “their theater”. A young morgue worker flickers on the screen; a girl who decided to commit suicide; the guy is Krishna . A man with long hair tells why he was detained. Subjects of drug addiction and substance abuse are raised , which became relevant during the anti-alcohol campaign . The young mother is worried about her daughter’s future after the Chernobyl accident , and the Afghan warriors feel like strangers at home and in their 20s are very “old”. The film ends with symbolic shots - people standing in the "blue sea of hope" - an amateur film by a young Latvian director.
Camera crew
- Director - Juris Podnieks
- Screenwriter - Abram Kletskin , Juris Podnieks
- Operator - Kalvis Salzmanis
- Composer - Martins Browns
Prizes
- Prize " Big Kristap " SK of Latvia, for the best documentary of the year (1986)
- American International Documentary Association Award (1987)
- Nika Award for Best Non-Fiction Film (1987)
- FIPRESCI Prize at the IFF film short film in Krakow (1987)
- The main prize of the All-Union Film Festival of young filmmakers in Tbilisi (1987)
- FIPRESCI Prize at the Cannes IFF (1988)
- Participation in the ICF Panorama Program in Berlin (1988)
- USSR State Prize (1988) [3]
Continuations
Juris Podnieks planned to return to his heroes in 10 years. In the summer of 1992, Juris died. The sequel to the film in 1997 was released by Antra Tsilinska, editor of the first picture. The film was released at Juris Podnieks Studios entitled “Is it Easy to Be? .. 10 Years Later” ( Latvian. “Vai viegli būt? .. Pēc 10 gadiem” ) [4] [5] .
In 2010, Antra Tsilinska released a new film from this cycle - “Is it easy? .. 20 years later” ( Latvian. “Vai viegli? .. Pēc 20 gadiem” ). In the new film, the heroes of the first picture are already over 40, and their children are as many as they were in the Soviet film themselves [6] [7] .
Notes
- ↑ The film is like an era
- ↑ Podnieks. Is it easy to be young?
- ↑ Encyclopedia of domestic cinema (inaccessible link)
- ↑ Is it easy to be ...? 10 years later (inaccessible link) . Date of treatment June 25, 2014. Archived June 13, 2014.
- ↑ “Is It Easy to Be Young?”: A film by Juris Podnieks
- ↑ Is it easy ...? 20 years later (inaccessible link) . Date of treatment June 25, 2014. Archived June 13, 2014.
- ↑ Cinema: About Latvia
Links
- “Is it easy to be young?” On the website latfilma.lv (English)
- “Is it easy to be young?” (Inaccessible link) on the site “Encyclopedia of Russian Cinema”.
- Articles about the film on the site "Encyclopedia of domestic cinema."
- “Wounded birds. Memoirs of Guido Zvaigzne, Juris Podnieks, Andris Slapinshe ” on the website of the magazine“ Cinema Art ”