We are deeply worried and disturbed about the current persecution of Kirill Serebrennikov by Russian Federation officals. All the circumstances suggest the prejudgement of the authorities and the pure political nature of the case. Kirill Serebrennikov is one of the most prominent and respected Russian filmmakers and stage directors in the world, he is well-known as a highly enthusiastic and selfless artist, and the obscure and ludicrous financial accusations he is charged with are unbelievable to anyone who knows him or his work. The situation could be considered as more evidence of the danger to freedom of thought and art in modern Russia. The FIRPESCI appeals to Russian authorities with a sense of urgency for a discontinuance of this absurd trial.
