Ali Khamraev, Jury Member of Cinema Verite, Shares an Unheard Memory with Tarkovsky
Ali Khamraev, the renowned Uzbek director, producer, and screenwriter, who also served as a judge at the 18th Cinema Verite festival, shared a memory of the famous Russian filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky.
According to the Public Relations Department of the Documentary, Experimental & Animation Film Center (DEFC), Ali Khamraev, the renowned Uzbek director, producer, and screenwriter, who also served as a judge at the 18th Iran International Documentary Film Festival -Cinema Verite, exclusively shared a memory of the famous Russian filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky.
“I have a wonderful photo of Andrei Tarkovsky, my wife Gulbustan, and me from June 1976! I was in Tashkent when Tarkovsky called me from Moscow, expressing that he couldn't find a suitable location for his film "Stalker," which resembled a post-atomic bomb zone. I mentioned that I knew of a particular place.” Khamraev stated.
“Andrei flew to Tashkent, and we drove in my car to the city of Isfara in Tajikistan, where I had previously filmed episodes for several of my movies.
He decided to film in the area of the former ancient Chinese mines, which was barren with no grass or trees. However, one month later, an earthquake struck the region, and the filming had to take place elsewhere. This photo captures a part of my cinematic memories and represents a very special moment for me.”
Ali Khamraev served as a jury member for the Feature Documentary Competition of the 18th Iran International Documentary Film Festival "Cinema Verite," which concluded on December 15th 2024.