Release
- Gazprom has contributed to the making of the film “Russia from Above.”
- The film has attracted 30 million viewers in Germany alone.
The St. Petersburg International Cultural Forum hosted a special screening of “Russia from Above,” a documentary made by German filmmakers with support from the Gazprom Group.
The audience was offered a bird’s-eye view of many Russian regions: from the coast of the Arctic Ocean to the deserts of Kalmykia; from the volcanos of Kamchatka to Mount Elbrus, the tallest peak in Europe; from the megalopolises of Moscow and St. Petersburg to villages in the Siberian taiga.
The film crew led by director Freddie Roeckenhaus spent nine months working on the documentary. Since its premiere in 2018, the film has drawn 30 million viewers in Germany alone.
“This film is dazzling not only because of the majestic vistas of our country displayed, but also because of its rich colors, unusual angles and vast scope. Gazprom provided support for this project, thanks to which both Russian and foreign viewers can enjoy the beauty of Russia, its terrains and diverse landscapes,” said Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee.
“I am certain that this film will strike a chord with every single person in Russia. And even though in my official capacity I have been to every region, I have never seen Russia like this. Even the places I’m used to are shown in a new light. This film is absolutely mesmerizing, and it was made with a tremendous amount of love for our country. I would like to thank Gazprom for supporting it, and I congratulate the film crew that made it,” said Olga Golodets, Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation.
“Before embarking on this project, we had already had similar documentaries under our belt. We had made ‘Germany from Above,’ a film about migrating birds. When we were shooting here in St. Petersburg, on Lake Ladoga, we thought we absolutely had to make a film about Russia, and we had no doubt that it would be wonderful. The biggest challenge for the film crew was the unbelievable, immense vastness of Russia, but we tried our best to meet that challenge. And we succeeded: we filmed footage in Altai, in the Barents Sea, and in many other areas,” said Freddie Roeckenhaus.
Background
The filming of “Russia from Above” took place in 2017 and 2018 with organizational and financial support from the Gazprom Group. It was carried out by the German production company ColourFIELD Film GmbH using high-resolution equipment.
The film premiered at the Center for Arts and Creativity in Dortmund, Germany, on June 13, 2018. It made its TV debut on the ARTE channel during the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia™. In 2019, “Russia from Above” won gold at a film festival in New York. Later, the film and the mini-series were screened in a number of European countries, including Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, and Switzerland.
