The topic and the conceptual basis of the film is the legendary bestseller of a novel «The Ugly Swans» written by the Strugatzky brothers in the late 1960s. For a long time it had remained a classical Samizdat piece; its first time in print happened eighteen years later, during which time it had lost nothing of its emotional load or urgency. Quite the opposite, it presently appears that the ideas touched in the story are gaining in significance with every year passing; its deep meaning becomes more and more obvious.
Here follows a quote from the «Psychology of the Future» (2002) by the prominent modern psychologist St.Groof: «When we look at it closer, the present global crisis will appear one of a basically spiritual and psychological nature, as it reflects the level reached by the evolution of the human consciousness. This is why it would be hard to imagine it could be resolved without a radical internal transformation of the mankind as such, after which the humans would ascend to a higher level of emotional maturity and spiritual self-perception».
So much about the concept.
Now about the film itself.
First of all, one should note an essential feature reflected in the entire style of the suggested film. We are talking about its intonation, its mood being the background for the action and possible to define as «mystery», «premonition», «Esoteric expectation». All this seems to be highly important; it is an inseparable part of the dramatic load even though regretfully impossible to describe verbally.
However, those who have read books by the Strugatzkys know that the same approach is standard for all their literary works. It naturally has to be preserved and emphasized in the film, to become the basis of its philosophy.
Taking into account the genre and the style of the film, we should immediately stress the special importance of the picture. On our opinion, it should be expressionistic, extremely striking in regard to color and composition, the takes should be short and capturing the viewers" attention, their involvement into the action.
Essential will appear complex shooting done with traditional methods, computer-aided graphics and frame finishing. What concerns the complex shooting, we believe that they should be based on the principle of double exposure combining real pre-filmed background objects with performing actors. Once again, this is just the base principle which does not rule out traditional modeling finish and modern computer-aided graphics in the strict sense of the words.
Thus the task seems to be shooting a truly »topical» film, wanted, interesting, and understandable in all countries of the world.
Action, sci-fi, mystery, and suspense throughout the movie, dramatic fates of the characters, their loves, - all this will result, on our mind, in an exciting and dynamic whole best defined as a mystical thriller.
The shooting will take place in Russia, Middle Asia, and, in part, in France.
For the leading roles we suppose we should cast Russian and Western European actors; the script allows for this. Primarily it goes about the leading female part, Diana, a European journalist and scholar working for the UN committee. The passionate love story of the hero and herself will become the main melodramatic motif of the film. Of importance is the part of scientist Golemba, the second major male one.
An important question is that of the language spoken in the movie. All conversations, in accordance with the script, should be in Russian, but Victor (the hero) will speak English talking with Golemba, and possibly with Diana.
Besides, the topic itself suggests that the hotel will appear the place where the entire international community of journalists, scholars, and TV crew hangs out, as the case always is in such cases. That means that some of the dialogs between the characters should be in English as well.
That makes the total language ratio of approximately 70% Russian vs. approximately 30% English.

LINKS

• Konstantin Lopushansky
• THE UGLY SWANS

DIRECTOR'S NOTE