The Opening Ceremony of the IDFF “Flahertiana” will have the film of living documentary classic Jerzy Sladkowski “Don Juan” screened. This documentary released in 2015 became a notable event in the world of non-fiction cinema. “Don Juan” has won numerous prizes including the Grand Prix of the IDFA which is the main documentary film festival. The screening in Perm is supported by the Embassy of Sweden in Moscow and the Swedish Film Insitute.

The locale of the film is Russia, Nizhny Novgorod. The audience will see a four-sided love triangle spiced neuroses and life crises. The 22-year- old autistic young man Oleg is seeking for approval and love. He is surrounded by many who want to help him, but no-one succeeds. Suddenly, help comes from an unexpected direction.

Pavel Petchenkin, the President of the IDFF Flahertiana, comments on the film: “Not only "Don Juan" is recognized as the best film of the year by professionals, it is important because it was shot in Russia. This means that our colleagues are interested in Russia not because of doping scandals or events in Ukraine. They are interested in how ordinary people live. And this movie tells that people in Russia are the same as everywhere else. This removes the political husks from the images of people from different countries”.

The filmmaker Jerzy Sladkowski was born in Poland in 1945. He immigrated to Sweden in 1983. Since then he has directed and produced over fifty documentaries. Recipient of several prestigious prizes including the European Film Award and the IDA Award.

The Opening Ceremony of the IDFF “Flahertiana” will be held on the 16th of September. The Festival will take a week to September, 23, and will include the International, National and Student Films competitions together with the large program of special events, retrospectives and workshops.