Russian film "Sea Sons" takes a poetic journey into the meaning of heroism

The cast of Russian film Sea Sons, a Golden Goblet Awards Main Competition contender, met the press at the 28th Shanghai International Film Festival on June 15.

Directed by Daniil Merkulov, the film follows the journey of three boys who set out in search of a legendary heirloom plant known as Balsam. On their odyssey-like trek toward the sea, they encounter a range of people and repeatedly grapple with what it truly means to be a hero.

Shot in black and white, the film explores the concept of heroism through a poetic and contemplative lens. Its cast includes Mark Bogatyryov, Sergey Chonishvili and Viktoriya Butskikh.

In telling the story of why the film's English title differs from its original Russian title, Merkulov gave insight into the nature of the main protagonists.

“One of the characters in the film points out that the word ‘seasons’ can be split into ‘sea’ and ‘sons,’ so this became one of the inspirations behind the title Sea Sons,” Merkulov said. 

“Additionally, each character in the film chooses a season that represents them, which is the genesis of the Russian title, 'Leto budet obshchim,' which in English means 'summer belongs to all of us’,” he added. 

“By giving the film distinctly different Russian and English titles, I wanted to leave a strong impression on audiences, so they feel this is a unique film.”

As both a producer and actor in the movie, Mikhael Lipman won applause from the media when he explained why the team had chosen Shanghai International Film Festival for its world premiere.

“I will start with saying a big ‘thank you’ to the Shanghai film festival because this is our first film and our first international film festival,” Lipman said. “We come from Russia which has a very special bond with China, a very special connection of cultures, of people, of industries and of communication, and this is the best.” 

Lead actress Anna Savranskaia and co-producers Karina Galimullina and Sofya Nikonova also expressed their affection for Shanghai and their excitement about attending the festival.

The Sea Sons team said that, given the opportunity, they hope to secure an official release for the film in China and would be keen to promote it so that more Chinese audiences can see their work.