Russian film director Alexei Uchitel has shared details about his upcoming feature film on composer Dmitri Shostakovich, titled The Noise of Time, ahead of his 75th birthday. Speaking to Russian newspaper Rossiyskaya Gazeta on August 31, 2026, the veteran filmmaker described the picture as a cinematic parable about genius rather than a standard biographical movie.
The narrative focuses on critical periods in Shostakovich's life when the composer experienced tragic setbacks, illustrating how those personal struggles were transformed into his famous musical compositions.
Script development and musical inspiration
Uchitel recalled seeing Shostakovich only once during his student days at the Gerasimov Institute of Cinematography, known as VGIK, when the composer attended a concert at the Grand Hall of the St. Petersburg Philharmonic. Although Shostakovich had a dedicated seat in the hall, Uchitel noted he never expected at the time that he would eventually make a movie about him.
The director drew inspiration from the documentary film Dmitri Shostakovich: Viola Sonata by Alexander Sokurov and Semyon Aranovich, as well as archival materials including Shostakovich's letters, diaries, and personal memories. Uchitel also studied footage of American conductor Leonard Bernstein directing Shostakovich's Fifth Symphony, noting that the camera remained focused on Bernstein's emotional face for several minutes after the finale. Although Uchitel originally hoped to use the archival footage for his film's ending, licensing issues prevented its inclusion.
While the project shares its title with British author Julian Barnes's novel The Noise of Time, Uchitel clarified that the film is not an adaptation of the book. The title instead borrows a metaphor from an essay by Russian poet Osip Mandelstam referring to the sound image of an era.
Work on the screenplay spanned several years and involved multiple writers before screenwriters Alexander Terekhov and Alexander Mindadze produced the final script, establishing the tone for the production.
Casting and historical portrayal
Actor Oleg Savtsov plays the lead role of Shostakovich, marking his first starring role in a feature film. Savtsov, who performs at the Theatre of Nations in Moscow, was selected after an extensive casting search because of his ability to convey the physical movements and psychological state of an aging person. Uchitel abandoned early plans to cast multiple actors for different life stages, relying on digital editing tools to adjust visual details such as aging eyes.
Savtsov noted that Shostakovich once remarked he would continue writing music holding a pen in his teeth even if both his hands were severed. Uchitel highlighted that the statement proved prophetic as Shostakovich battled severe health conditions, including amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a progressive neurological disease that causes body paralysis while leaving mental faculties intact.
First experiencing symptoms in his right hand as a young man, Shostakovich lived for 12 years after his diagnosis despite doctors giving him a maximum expectancy of five to six years. He eventually died of lung cancer, completing his renowned Viola Sonata just weeks before his death.
Actress Polina Tsyganova appears as an unnamed female character who serves as a collective representation of an artistic muse. Uchitel compared the narrative device to his earlier biographical film His Wife's Diary, which examined how Russian writer Ivan Bunin's relationship with poet Galina Kuznetsova influenced his literary collection Dark Avenues.
The film also depicts Shostakovich's official recognition and political compromises under Soviet rule, including his five Stalin Prizes, his title as Hero of Socialist Labour, his film scores for movies about Karl Marx and Sofia Perovskaya, and programmatic works such as his Twelfth Symphony. Uchitel explained that Shostakovich stopped writing operas after his work Lady Macbeth faced official criticism, choosing symphonic music because instrumental compositions allowed him to communicate personal feelings without relying on text.
Rivalries and roof-top cable scene
Actor Yevgeny Tsyganov portrays composer Sergei Prokofiev, exploring the complex relationship between the two 20th-century figures. Tsyganov initially hesitated to take the role after previously playing composer Sergei Rachmaninoff in Pavel Lungin's film Lilac Branch, but agreed after screen tests.
The movie includes a historical incident following Prokofiev's death on the same day as Soviet leader Joseph Stalin. Because mourning crowds packed Kamergersky Lane in central Moscow on their way to the Hall of Columns in the House of Unions, Prokofiev's coffin could not be carried out through the street. Shostakovich arranged for workers from the Bolshoi Theatre to stretch a heavy cable over the rooftops, suspending the coffin and moving it across the skyline above the crowds below.
Nikita Kologrivy plays a young rival composer who writes about Soviet rural life while rising through Communist Party ranks. Actor Danila Kozlovsky makes a cameo appearance as Soviet Marshal Mikhail Tukhachevsky.
Production for The Noise of Time took place in Moscow, St. Petersburg, and the town of Vyshny Volochek in Tver Oblast, incorporating crowd scenes with up to 500 extras. Uchitel acknowledged that international film festival avenues such as Venice, Berlinale, and Cannes are currently unavailable for the film due to existing geopolitical conditions.
Retrospectives and upcoming releases
Alongside his new project, Uchitel announced that his 2005 film Dreaming of Space is returning to Russian movie theaters. The re-release follows last year's theatrical return of his 2003 film The Stroll and precedes a planned re-release of his historical drama Matilda.
Dreaming of Space previously screened during the pandemic at Moscow's October Cinema to a sold-out audience, followed by a discussion featuring actresses Irina Pegova and Yelena Lyadova. Written by Alexander Mindadze, the film stars Yevgeny Mironov as a cook and boxer, Pegova as a waitress, Lyadova as her sister, and Yevgeny Tsyganov as a former labor camp prisoner. Uchitel noted that the movie title has since become a popular cultural phrase in Russian literature, referenced in Rybakov's story Trainees as a Foreboding and the book collection Miracle as a Foreboding.
Uchitel is also serving as a producer on a Moscow-based remake of The Stroll, directed by his son Ilya Uchitel. The original 2003 movie was filmed in St. Petersburg during preparations for the city's 300th anniversary, while the new project will offer a contemporary perspective from a younger generation.
Additionally, Ilya Uchitel is completing post-production on the feature film The Saved One, written by Alexander Terekhov and adapted from the writings of Russian author Viktor Astafyev. The wartime drama follows two young people stranded in 1942 who must navigate miles of ice and snow under attack from a German aircraft.
Documentary ambitions and teaching at VGIK
Uchitel currently serves as president of the Message to Man International Film Festival, a major forum centered on documentary cinema. Having spent half his career as a documentarian prior to directing his first feature film, Gisele's Mania, about Russian ballerina Olga Spessivtseva, Uchitel expressed a desire to return to non-fiction filmmaking.
He revealed past attempts to film documentary projects about theatre director Pyotr Fomenko, conductor Valery Gergiev, and stage director Lev Dodin. After viewing Dodin's production of Maxim Gorky's play The Lower Depths featuring new theater students, Uchitel assigned his own VGIK film students to document Dodin's rehearsal process.
Uchitel has taught at VGIK for 20 years and is currently guiding his fifth student workshop. Operating without traditional lectures, his practical training program requires students to produce one film every six months, alternating between fiction and documentary projects. Supported by VGIK rector Vladimir Malyshev, his recent graduating class became the first to receive dual diplomas in both feature and documentary directing.
Admissions for the current academic year drew nearly 700 applicants, with 164 candidates selected for entrance examinations before 25 students were accepted. Uchitel recounted accepting a 17-year-old applicant from a rural village in Krasnodar Krai who spoke for 40 minutes late at night, captivating the admissions board with dramatic stories from her background.
Reflecting on student development, Uchitel highlighted director Polina Kondratyeva, who took an academic leave after her first year before returning to win the top award at the Korotche debut film festival with her project Clean Sheet.
