The life and times of renowned Russian film director Andrey Tarkovsky

MOSCOW, April 4. /TASS/. April 4, 2022, marks the 90th anniversary of famous Russian film director Andrey Tarkovsky. Origin and education Andrey Tarkovsky was born on April 4, 1932. His father - Arseny Tarkovsky was a poet, playwright and translator from Eastern languages. As a child, Andrey Tarkovsky lived with his parents in Moscow, in 1937 his father left the family. In 1941-1943, he lived with his relatives together with his mother in Yuryevets (Ivanovo region). In 1951-1953, he was a student of the Arabic Language Department of the Moscow Institute of Oriental Studies, but abandoned his studies. In 1953-1954, Andrey Tarkovsky worked in the geological expedition of Science Institute for Non-ferrous and Gold to the river Kureyka (Yenisey tributary, Krasnoyarsk region). In 1954, he entered the directing department at the All-Union State Cinematography Institute (VGIK). Tarkovsky graduated from VGIK with honors in 1961, his diploma work was a short film Katok i skripka (The Steamroller and the Violin, the plot was written jointly with Andrey Konchalovsky). Film career Since 1961 Andrey Tarkovsky worked as a director at the Mosfilm film studio. His first full-length feature film was Ivan’s Childhood (Ivanovo detstvo in Russian). In 1962, the film won the Golden Lion award - the main prize of the Venice Film Festival (Italy). In 1964-1965, Andrey Tarkovsky worked on the philosophical drama Andrey Rublev. Members of the State Commission, who accepted the film, accused the director of absence of optimism and lack of humanism. As a result, Tarkovsky was forced to change the original version of the film significantly (released in the Soviet Union in a cut version in 1971, in the author’s version - in 1988). In 1969 the film Andrey Rublev received a special prize of the International Federation of Film Critics at the Cannes Film Festival (France). In 1972, Tarkovsky presented the film Solaris, shot on the novel of the Polish novelist Stanislav Lem. In 1973-1974, the director worked on a philosophical drama called Mirror or Zerkalo in Russian. This film was based on the cinematographer’s memories of his childhood and his parents, contained his father’s poems. In 1975, the motion picture came out in a limited release. In 1977, Andrey Tarkovsky was a theatrical director at the Lenkom Theater in Moscow. He staged the tragedy Hamlet by William Shakespeare. In 1977-1979, he worked on the film Stalker on the basis of a fantastic story Roadside Picnic by Arkady and Boris Strugatsky. It premiered in 1980. In 1982, Andrey Tarkovsky went abroad to prepare for the shooting of the Soviet-Italian film Nostalghia (Nostalgia, Italian writer Tonino Guerra took part in the work on the script). In 1983 the film won a number of awards from the Cannes Film Festival, including the prize for Best Director. Also in Italy, Tarkovsky shot a documentary film Voyage in Time. In 1983, he staged the opera Boris Godunov by Modest Musorgsky at the Royal Opera House (London, the UK). In 1984, the film director did not receive permission from the Soviet Government to continue working abroad. Then, he held a press conference in Milan (Italy) at which he announced his decision not to return to the USSR. In 1985, Andrey Tarkovsky shot his last film in Sweden - the philosophical drama The Sacrifice. In 1986, it was awarded the Grand Prix of the Cannes Film Festival. Last years of life, death In 1985, Andrey Tarkovsky was diagnosed with cancer. He died in Paris on December 29, 1986, at the age of 54. He was buried in the cemetery of Sainte-Genevieve-des-Bois in the suburbs of the French capital. Personal life Andrey Tarkovsky was married twice. His first wife was actress and director Irma Raush (born in 1938). Son - Arseny (born in 1962). The second wife was Larisa Kizilova (1933-1998). Son - Andrey (born in 1970). Memory and recognition Several Russian streets are named after Tarkovsky. The 3345 Tarkovskij asteroid is named in his honor. In 1996, the Andrey Tarkovsky Museum was established in Yuryevets. Since 2007 the International Film Festival Mirror named after Andrey Tarkovsky has been held annually in Ivanovo region. Read more