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Woody Allen defended appearance at the Moscow Film Festival
Oscar winner Woody Allen defends his participation in the Moscow Film Festival despite violent criticism from Ukraine. He emphasizes the importance of artistic dialogues in times of crisis.
Woody Allen defended appearance at the Moscow Film Festival
The Oscar-winning director Woody Allen defended himself to participate in the Moscow Film Festival after severe criticism from Ukraine. In a statement that his assistant sent to CNN on Monday, he expressed his opinion on the current situation in Ukraine.
Woody Allen's opinion on the Ukraine conflict
"With regard to the conflict in Ukraine, I am firmly convinced that Vladimir Putin is completely wrong. The war he caused is hideous," said Allen. Despite his critical attitude towards political decisions, he said: "But no matter what politicians did, I don't think it is good to cancel artistic communication."
Criticism of the Ukrainian government
Allen's declaration followed the violent criticism of the Ukrainian government, which condemned his decision to appear as the main guest at the festival. The Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs: "Woody Allen's participation in the Moscow International Film Week is a shame and an insult to the victim of Ukrainian actors and filmmakers who were killed or injured by Russian war criminals in the continued war against Ukraine."
Moscow International Film Week and their sponsors
The Moscow International Film Week is sponsored by Russian state media, state companies and the city government of Moscow. A photo published on the official telegram channel of the festival shows the 89-year-old filmmaker how he takes part in a session via a video call and speaks to the Russian director Fjodor Bondartschuk, who is an ally of Putin and has publicly supported Russia's invasion into Ukraine.
Allen relationship with the Russian film industry
According to the festival's press office, he said that he was looking for the Russian cinema, and he called the Soviet film version of "War and Peace", which was staged by Sergei Bondartschuk, the father of Fyodor Bondartschuk. Russian state media reported that everyone said during the meeting that he had no plans to make a film in Russia, but "only good feelings for Moscow and St. Petersburg".
Reactions to all of the participation
The Russian envoy Kirill Dmitriev claimed that Allen's appearance at the festival prove that "Russia is not isolated". In a post on X wrote Dmitriev: "The attempt to reject Woody Allen via a video call to the Moscow International Film Festival misses the point: Russia is not isolated - and art should build bridges, not burn them off."