Sergei Vladimirovich Bodrov (; born 28 June 1948) is a Russian film director, screenwriter, and producer. In 2003 he was the president of the jury at the 25th Moscow International Film Festival.

Life

Bodrov was born in Khabarovsk, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union (now Russia). In the post-Soviet period he emigrated to the United States. His son, actor Sergei Bodrov, Jr. was killed in an avalanche in the mountains of the North Caucasus on 20 September 2002, while shooting a film titled The Messenger.

Bodrov was raised by his grandparents. while his paternal grandfather was an ethnic Russian.

Bodrov currently has an apartment in Los Angeles and a ranch in Arizona. He is married to American film consultant Carolyn Cavallaro.

Career

Bodrov was ones of the first group of directors under Glasnost to have more freedom to discuss topics in film that were previous made off limits by the government, and some banned films were finally able to be shown.

Bodrov originally went to school to be a space ship engineer, studying shuttle design, but in his third year he got kicked out of class due to his gambling addiction. He said the problem got so bad he robbed his grandmother, which he regretted so much that he stopped gambling after that.

He then got a job as an electrician at the government film studio, Mosfilm. He worked doing wiring on Andrei Tarkovsky films and eventually moved up to writing scripts for comedies. In 1985, he broke into directing with Sweet Juice of the Grass (1985), produced by Kazakhfilm Studios

His second film The Non-Professionals (1985–87), was banned in the USSR for its references to the invasion of Afghanistan. It is an avowedly anti-war movie about two Russian soldiers who are captured and held hostage by Chechens.

  • Mongol
  • Nika Award for Best Picture and Best Director.
  • Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film nomination.
  • The Quickie
  • 23rd Moscow International Film Festival Golden St. George (nominated)

Filmography

  • Sweet Juice of the Grass (1985)
  • The Non-Professionals (1987)
  • Freedom Is Paradise (1989)
  • Katala (1989)
  • White King, Red Queen (1992)
  • Prisoner of the Mountains (1996)
  • Running Free (2000)
  • The Quickie (2001)
  • Bear's Kiss (2002)
  • Shiza (2004)
  • Nomad (2005)
  • Mongol (2007)
  • A Yakuza's Daughter Never Cries (2010)
  • Seventh Son (2014)
  • Breathe Easy (2022)

References

  • Culturebase