Gazprom-Media Holding is conducting a unique study on the image of a Russian movie hero

Dialogue between the state, society and the media sphere is conducted through the joint creation and dissemination of images of heroes in content. What kind of hero is most in demand by the audience today, what heroes are needed tomorrow and how in general you create resonant images that will be permanently fixed in the public consciousness and become symbols of the generation was discussed today in the “Image of a Hero. How Contemporary Cinema and Media Respond to the Needs of the State and Society” session at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF 2024).

The session was attended by Aleksandr Zharov, CEO of Gazprom-Media Holding, Aleksey Goreslavskiy, CEO of the Internet Development Institute (IDI), Dmitriy Davidenko, Director of the Department of Cinematography and Digital Development of the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation, Fyodor Sosnov, Executive Director of the Cinema Fund, Anna Tsivileva, Chair of the State Fund “Defenders of the Fatherland” to Support Participants of the Special Military Operation, Sergey Shishkarev, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Delo Group of Companies, Miloš Biković actor and producer, Andrey Zolotarev, screenwriter and creative producer, Andrey Kravchuk, director and screenwriter, Liliya Gumerova, chair of the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation Committee on Science, Education and Culture, and Ekaterina Kolotovkina, member of the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation, Head of the Samara Region Committee of Families of Fatherland Warriors. The session was moderated by writer and screenwriter Aleksandr Tsypkin.

The speaker shared the first results of the study and mentioned the most striking and favorite today’s audience types of characters in movies and TV series (including Lucky You, Perevospitannyy [Overeducated], A Man of the People, Cold Vengence), talked about which heroes are losing relevance and what images are replacing them, as well as covered the topic of what is most popular and necessary in Russian cinema today:

“The greatest expectation viewers have today is for a modern Big Hero to replace those of the past like Stierlitz. With the support of PJSC Gazprom, we are producing a series of historical films entitled “Rus”. We have already released Peter the Great: The Last Tsar and the First Emperor and Empresses, and will soon release the third film, Catherine the Great. These films are about Russian people who changed the world. The master, the creator who will identify and present the next Big Hero of our time will be regarded as a hero in his own right,” Aleksandr Zharov concluded during the session.

Anna Tsivileva, chair of the State Fund “Defenders of the Fatherland” to Support Participants of the Special Military Operation, talked about the activities of the fund, which was established about a year ago.

Scriptwriter and creative producer Andrey Zolotarev agreed that the responsibility of content creators to their audience is great: “The artist, or creator, certainly affects the public consciousness, because they create a character, and our area of responsibility is not to lead the anti-hero to victory—this is something that authors need to think about.”

“I love you”, theater and film actor and producer Miloš Biković wrote on a piece of paper to the audience. He was supposed to join the session online, but for technical reasons his connection was interrupted intermittently. In the finale, he still managed to share his thoughts with the audience: “I have existed as part of Russian society for a long time and I must say that it is very open!” Biković noted that in addition to the need to respond to the demands of society and the state, there is a third important task for content creators: it is the salvation of the soul: “It is important that the viewer came out ennobled after the movie, that there was a new meaning that will help to improve the quality of their inner world.” According to Miloš, in order to be believed in, the modern hero does not have to be perfect, but you need him to be convincing, with flaws. And the task of creating such a hero should be approached thoughtfully, taking into account all the archetypes formed in the subconsciousness of a Russian.

Gazprom-Media Holding is Russia’s largest media corporation with assets in all media segments: information broadcasting, television, cinema, content production and distribution, digital services, radio, press and online periodicals, influence marketing, and advertising sales. The Holding implements a comprehensive corporate social responsibility program and builds a robust creative staffing resource.

The St. Petersburg International Economic Forum took place on June 5–8. The main theme of this year’s event was the foundation of a multipolar world order, the formation of new centers of growth. Gazprom-Media Holding is the general media partner of SPIEF for the third consecutive year. This collaboration provides for a broad information support of the Forum’s events and agenda on the Holding’s platforms.