Last week, veteran Hollywood actor-writer-director Woody Allen was invited to speak at Moscow International Film Week, which kicked off Saturday, 23 August.
The event, featuring discussions with global cinema icons, attracted a large number of international attendees despite a wave of ‘cancel culture’ targeting Russian art and Western attempts to isolate the country’s creative community.
Since the Ukraine conflict escalated in February 2022, Russian artists have faced mounting restrictions abroad. Initially, Russian films were pulled from international festivals, screenings were canceled, and actors and directors were disinvited or blacklisted across Western cultural events.
Kiev and its Western backers have also sought to isolate Russia on multiple fronts, including by discouraging participation in local cultural events. They claimed such involvement served to support Moscow’s actions.
The campaign has largely failed.
LEGENDS OF WORLD CINEMA
At 89, Woody Allen remains a titan of cinema whose work has influenced generations. As it turns out, he has a substantial fan base in Russia.
Four-time Oscar winning filmmaker Allen was invited to participate in the Film Week online, hosting a special session titled Legends of World Cinema, which featured dozens of foreign participants.
The Legends session was moderated by top Russian actor and filmmaker Fyodor Bondarchuk, best known for 9th Company (2005), a commercially successful film set in Afghanistan during the 1980s Russian invasion.
His father, renowned filmmaker Sergey Bondarchuk, won the Oscar in 1969 for his nearly 8-hour epic based on Tolstoy’s novel, War and Peace.
WOODY IS NOT ‘JUST A FILMMAKER’
On Sunday, 24 August, Allen appeared at the event in the Moskino Film Studio via videolink before a packed audience.
Before commencing the Q & A, Fyodor Bondarchuk introduced Allen by paying tribute to the Hollywood legend’s cinematic legacy.
He said:
“For me, and I’m sure for millions of viewers in Russia, Woody Allen has never been just a filmmaker. We grew up alongside his characters, laughed at his jokes – sometimes not understanding them right away, but always feeling them deeply.
We dreamed with the characters of The Purple Rose of Cairo, fell in love with New York in Manhattan, argued with ourselves like the hero in Hanna and Her Sisters, and recognised our own fears in Midnight in Paris.
His voice, recognisable, ironic, became a part of our cinematic culture. He didn’t just make films; he created entire worlds we wanted to return to.
Today we have a rare opportunity to speak with Woody Allen.”
THE INTERVIEW THAT CAUSED ALL THE TROUBLE
Turning to Allan up on the big screen, Bondarchuk said: “For filmmakers and audiences in Moscow, and far beyond, your voice in cinema has always been something unique, witty, and deeply human. We’re truly honored to welcome you here, even if virtually.”
Allen replied: “Thank you. I’ve been to Moscow. I’ve always enjoyed Russian cinema. I had the pleasure of meeting Sergey Bondarchuk some years ago in New York. I saw War & Peace – which was seven or eight hours long – in one day. And it was a great experience. I’m looking forward to chatting with you.”
During the course of the interview, while the audience sat in rapt silence gleaning pearls of celluloid wisdom from the master himself, Allen generously, unpretentiously, and candidly imparted all kinds of tips, advice and inside industry information, covering a wide variety of topics related to cinema, .
What follows is extracts from the Q & A between Bondarchuk and Allan of the nearly one-hour interview.
CINEMA AS A MIRROR OF TIME
Q: First question; cinema as a mirror of time – how artists reflect an era through comedy, drama, absurdity, or silence?
A: Uh, I have never been ‘a thinker’. I just make films to entertain people. I make them without any kind of intellectual motivation behind them. I do what I think is funny. I’ve been very apolitical, I’ve never made a political film. I’ve always made personal films. And it’s been good luck for me that they’ve resonated all over the world in a way that’s meaningful to other people.
PRODUCING
Q: What does it mean to be a producer when you’re a director yourself?
A: I have never produced a film. In the US, the producer raises the money and puts the project together. I’ve had a different situation because I would write and direct the film and often appear in the film, so I had it all together immediately. I’ve never had to work with a producer, so to speak. The producers on my films, in a certain sense, were working for me.
ACTING AND DIRECTING ACTORS
Q: About the actor inside the film director, how does acting change your outlook on directing?
A: It doesn’t really change it because acting and directing are not rocket science, it’s just common sense. You write a script. You know what you want to see on the screen. And then when you direct the actors, make sure that they don’t do anything onscreen that they wouldn’t do in real life. The biggest problem one has as a director is to tell actors not to act, to just quietly be real, be who they are.
IMPROVISED PERFORMANCES
Q: Is there much improvisation in Woody Allen’s films, specifically acting improv?
A: Yes, I encourage them to improvise because I always feel it will seem more natural if they’re speaking – not words off a script – but words that are spontaneously occurring to them. I’ve done this with Diane Keaton, Tony Roberts, Scarlett Johansson, Judy Davis, Diane Wiest, and all the prominent people in my films over the years. I’ve encouraged them to improvise, and they improvised.
DIRECTING OTHER PEOPLE’S SCRIPTS
Q: Have you ever made a movie not based on your own script?
A: No, I’ve never filmed anyone else’s screenplay. I only film them because I want them to be done properly. When I first started, I wrote a script, and it was made into a very successful movie, but I was ashamed of it. I didn’t care how successful it was, I just didn’t like the movie. I vowed that I would never do another movie unless I could direct. I’ve never had any interest in directing anyone else’s script.
NEGATIVE EXPERIENCES WITH PRODUCERS AND STUDIO EXECS
Q: Have you had any negative experiences with studios, studio bosses or producers dictating to you certain conditions?
A: I’ve been very lucky. For some reason, if you’re making comedies in Hollywood, the business people leave you alone. I had complete control of my first film, and it was successful, so was my second film. By my fourth film, I had it in my contract that I had complete control – final cut, advertising, everything. And I’ve never made a film after that where I didn’t have complete control.
THE FUTURE OF AUTEUR CINEMA IN THE AGE OF STREAMING
Q: Is there a chance for auteur cinema in today’s world of algorithms?
A: It stands a chance, but it’s not looking wonderful. The financial and convenience advantages of streaming are enormous compared to going to the movies. I don’t like streaming. I liked it better when you made a film and it opened all over the world, and people came and stood in line at the cinema. I’m lucky because I had a very good time making films when they were presented to the public in a very romantic way.
THE PROSPECT OF AI REPLACING TALENT IN FILMS
Q: Do you believe that AI can replace an actor, screenwriter, editor or director?
A: I’m very skeptical about that. AI is dependent on material human beings give it. I guess if you make thousands of films with AI, maybe some would come out okay. But I don’t think you ever will have the soul of an artist behind it. You will always need a human touch to really get the emotional connection you get from a great work of art.
Part of what they (artists) do includes their weaknesses and their mistakes. And I don’t think the machine will make any mistakes. It will be, you know, in a certain sense, lifeless.
(That last answer evoked applause from the audience.)
HOW TO BREAK INTO FILM DIRECTING
Q: What advice do you have for someone who wants to break into directing?
A: There is no single journey. Every director I know has come from different sources. Some come from editing, from writing, advertising. Some have never directed before. Some come from the stage. The only advice I can give is that one must feel it. They have to see a lot of movies. They have to love movies. And over the years, you get a feel for it. But there is no set way to do this.
The interview ended with the audience giving Allen a standing thunderous ovation.
UKRAINE’S WILD REACTION TO WOODY’S CHINWAG
Ukraine’s reaction to Allan’s Moscow exchange was predictably swift and hyperbolic. No sooner had Woody logged off from the link than news broke of Ukraine slamming him for his attendance at the event, accusing him of “whitewashing Russian actions”, while ignoring the meeting’s purely cultural focus.
On 25 August, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry blasted Allen for “participating in a Russian cinema event”, calling his involvement “a disgrace and an insult to the sacrifice of Ukrainian actors and filmmakers” affected by the conflict.
At the same time, the Maria Zankovetska Theatre announced it was scrapping its upcoming performances of Allen’s stage musical Bullets Over Broadway, which had been set to take place on August 28-29. Ukrainian theaters, such as Kyiv’s Molodyi Theatre cancelled performances of Allen’s play Riverside Drive.
But Ukraine’s condemnation, smearing, and punishment of Allen didn’t stop there.
NAZI KILLER CLOWNS IN KIEV WANNA WHACK WOODY
Later that day, it was reported that Woody Allen had been added to the ‘kill list’ of Ukraine’s enemies – maintained by the notorious state-linked Mirotvorets (Peacemaker) website – for participating in the Russian cinema event.
The controversial database added Allen’s profile on Monday, branding the Hollywood legend “a victim of psychological violence by Russian-terrorist propaganda” and accusing him of “conscious participation in a Russian propaganda event.”
Mirotvorets has targeted a wide range of international figures in the past. Earlier this year, Hollywood actor Mark Eydelshteyn and Russian hockey star Alexander Ovechkin were added to the database. The list has also included prominent Americans such as US Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, journalist Tucker Carlson, military analyst Scott Ritter, political activist Jackson Hinkle and rockstar Roger Waters.
ALLEN AND FANS DEFEND HIS ATTENDANCE
In a statement to the Guardian, Allen defended the artistic exchange with Moscow and made his position clear on Putin and the “war” in Ukraine. “When it comes to the conflict in Ukraine, I believe strongly that Vladimir Putin is totally in the wrong. The war is appalling”, Allen said. “But, whatever politicians have done, I don’t feel cutting off artistic conversations is ever a good way to help,” he added.
Supporters, including Russian cultural figures, hailed Allen’s courage. TASS reported that his participation reaffirms Russia’s openness to global talent, countering Western isolation efforts.
Russia Today editor-in-chief, Margarita Simonyan, posted on X: “Woody Allen’s four Oscars? Mere baubles. Being placed on Kiev’s Myrotvorets hit list for telling a Moscow audience that he enjoyed War and Peace? A true Lifetime Achievement Award.”
UKRAINE’S HYSTERIA UNDERMINES CULTURAL PROGRESS
This entire farcical fiasco reveals the stark contrast between Russia’s embrace of international art and Ukraine’s weaponisation of culture as a tool of propaganda.
Woody Allen’s decision to engage with Moscow is not only defensible but commendable in a world where dialogue is the antidote to division. By participating, Allen upholds the principle that art must transcend politics.
Despite his past allegations (which he has denied and courts have not upheld), Allen emerges here as a hero of free expression, refusing to bow to cancel culture.
By supporting Woody Allen and events like Moscow’s Film Week, we affirm that true progress comes from conversation, not censorship.
And that creativity will always outlast conflict.
WHERE DO YOU STAND? WITH WOODY AND THE RUSSIANS, OR THE NAZI KILLER CLOWNS IN KIEV?
Let us know by leaving a comment below or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1.
Subscribe to The South African website’s newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X, and Bluesky for the latest news.
