Living it up / Красиво жить

2019 | Fiction | 18 min. | Russia | 12+

We all want to live the good life. A provincial plant engineer Ivan is no exception to this rule. He is forced to pull off various tricks to get his honestly earned money to have a chance to feel what is it like to live it up.

Directors Statement

I spent most time of my life in the big cities — in Kiev firstly, then in Moscow. Life in a province has always been something unknown to me and therefore fascinated. "Living it up" started from an episode I once observed on a plant, where I was working part-time. I saw two workers faking a work injury. Next few months I attempted to develop this sequence to a plot, understand the intentions of characters and their motivations. This episode became the starting point of the film and the set reflecting of the Russian periphery and its frozen essence of long-lasting nineties. I wanted to present a hero in such conditions, who despite the atmosphere of stagnancy attempted even for one day feel alive and switch the depressing reality to a «beautiful life», just living it up.

Director: Yaroslav Lebedev

Producer: Daria Safronova

Сast: Michael Prismotrov, Andrey Kozlov , Michael Mukhin and Maria Skvotnitskaya