Main Competition Jury about its work approaches at the 45th MIFF: "We will reach a consensus, as the cinematic language unites"

The Main Competition Jury of the 45th Moscow International Film Festival – the Russian actress Svetlana Ivanova, the Kazakh actress Samal Yeslyamova, the Russian actor and producer Aleksey Guskov, the Colombian director Ciro Guerra, and the Jury Chair, a top Indian filmmaker Rahul Rawail, – spoke about their judging approaches at the Festival.

Rahul Rawail: "We will watch the films to evaluate all aspects of each of them and make decisions based on that. I will be happy to have lively discussions about all the competing films with my wonderful colleagues. And I'm sure this discussion will make it possible to reach mutual understanding, more to that is that the cinematic language unites people from around the world".

Ciro Guerra: "Moscow International Film Festival is very important and has a good reputation in Latin America. I have always wanted to be here, and I am honored to be part of the Main Competition Jury. To be honest, I do not know the criteria we will use to judge the films. In my opinion, there are films that generate a strong feedback and leave a memory. This is the response I want to see from the audience and from every jury member".

Aleksey Guskov: "I think I understand the craft that I am into, as do my colleagues in the acting profession, so I will expect an emotional component from the films. I won't be able to analyze a film the way a globally renowned director would do it. Moreover, our Jury Chair is also a cinema researcher. I hope we will easily reach a consensus, but I can influence the awards in my profession, because I can understand where there is an actor's effort and not just character-type work and industry-standard approaches, and also discovery and inspiration. This is exactly what I am going tactfully hint my fellow jurors about."

Svetlana Ivanova: "This is my first experience as a jury member and I don't know what to expect from myself, I suddenly might be an avid arguer. But without kidding, of course being part of the jury of the MIFF Main Competition is a great honor for me. I am a devout cinema lover and have invested more than half of my short life to it. This experience is an opportunity for me to watch films with a bit higher commitment, attention, deepness, and this is highly valuable for me".

Samal Yeslyamova: "We are all focused on the quality of cinema art. Due to my experience, I feel the dramaturgy, the real acting, I wouldn't say I understand 100% of cinema aspects, but I always feel when a picture strikes me. For me this is the very benchmark of quality".