Ahead of the opening of the III International Film Festival “Antares,” a press conference was held at the TASS news agency, dedicated to the festival’s main theme — the working person and the diversity of professions. The event, held live, was attended by Chairman of the Federation of Independent Trade Unions of Russia Sergey Chernogaev, President of the Antares Film Festival Alexander Khalimovsky, Artistic Director and Chief Conductor of the State Kremlin Orchestra of the Administration of the President of the Russian Federation Konstantin Chudovsky, and Festival Director Andrey Afrin.
The central speaker at the meeting was Sergey Chernogaev. He spoke about an urgent problem of contemporary cinema: Russian films still lack heroes whose profession becomes the core of their character and the plot.
“On screen, the working person still too often remains in the background. We see the result of his work, but far from always — his doubts and choices. Art largely determines whom society considers a hero, whose actions become an example, what values are passed on to the next generations,” Chernogaev noted. In his opinion, cinema must go beyond simple production sketches. It is important that the profession on screen not serve merely as decoration, but become part of the hero himself and the driving force of the plot: a doctor on screen should be a real doctor, a teacher — a teacher, a welder — a welder, and an icebreaker captain — a person making fateful decisions. At the same time, good cinema about labor must not turn into a report or a set of correct slogans — it must remain honest, convincing, and emotional. It is precisely this approach, as Chernogaev emphasized, that forms the basis of the Antares festival program.
The other participants of the press conference also spoke in support of the announced theme and discussed the upcoming events of the festival.
Recall that this year the festival’s competition program brought together more than 170 films from 44 countries. Their heroes were representatives of 133 professions — from the most common to unusual and rare. This diversity, according to the chairman of the federation, clearly demonstrates how universal the theme of labor is and how many facets it opens for cinema.
The III International Film Festival “Antares” will be held in Moscow from September 12 to 25, 2026. The competition program includes documentary and animated films, full-length and short films, as well as screenplays.
Accreditation for the festival is open https://forms.yandex.ru/cloud/69ce7f44068ff0ed774e3661/
Detailed information about the competition program https://antares.film/competition-program-by-day
Based on TASS materials https://tass.ru/kultura/28079443
09.10.2026 г.
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