2016 AIFF interviews with the filmmakers
“Location, location, location” was the key for director Vlad Aksenov’s short dramatic fantasy film, Millennium: Eternal Sunrise. Had he not found his mysterious mountain location, he may have still been scouting for a location.
Getting it right is important for Vlad Aksenov, a Los Angeles based writer-director who was born and raised in Moscow (Russia). Aksenov has written and directed three short films, and his most recent work, Millennium: Eternal Sunrise, was his UCLA thesis film. This short has already won Best awards at other film festivals.
Millennium: Eternal Sunrise takes you into the world of an 11-year-old gypsy girl who recently lost her mother. Set on meeting a magical Ramani (Gypsy) man, she disobeys her father and journeys to the enigmatic mountain summit. There she meets the ancient legend hoping he will use his Millennium box magic to resurrect her beloved mom. However, the girl learns that she must decide if she is ready to exchange her future life for the ability to recast her past.
The 19 Annual Arpa International Film Festival will screen Millennium: Eternal Sunrise on November 5 at 12:00pm at the EgyptianTheatre. As a part of a series of interviews with 2016 AIFF category nominees, Aksenov answered the following questions.
Why did you choose to make your film?
I believe that nowadays there is a lack of films equally interesting and meaningful for all ages. Some adults still believe in wonders, but kids know for sure that miracles do exist. So, I wanted to make a movie that is designed for adults and kids, focusing on a common thread between the “real world” and the “imaginary world” … a “dream” and “reality.”
Name a moment during shooting that made you proud.
It’s hard to pick just one. I can name a few shots and visual effects in the film: such as the rising water inside the magic box, and falling down the cliff and characters disappearing at the bottom. It was quite an issue to create something like that in a student short film, but together with my director of photography we could create something impressive. All of those effects in the film are practical and look very natural.
Was there an “Aha moment” while making your film?
The film itself was pretty well planned. But the location scouting was such a pain. The mountain for the final scene was very important for me. Its summit had to be odd, magical, and unique and exist geographically close to Los Angeles. We were looking for the place for the final scene for three months, and then I watched “Devil’s Backbone” film by Guillermo Del Toro. The next day, our cinematographer mentioned the ridge called Devil’s Backbone close to Mt. Baldy, which is 60 miles east from Los Angeles. At that moment I realized that we had the place.
Was there a bizarre moment that happened while making your film?
During our pre-production we had plenty of strange, magical moments and coincidences. One of them was while we were scouting at Mt. Baldy. We didn’t know the owners of the place, how to find them and how to get a permit to shoot there. We came just for scouting and had to hike for about 40 min to the summit. The issue was that we couldn’t drive up there and it seemed absolutely impossible to hike for so long with all crew and equipment. On our way to the top, a car passed by us on a fire road and we were wondering who it was and why they were allowed to drive. After we picked our spots, on our way back we ran into a couple of strangers who turned out to be the owners of the place. They kindly offered to drive us back from the summit and later allowed us to shoot at every spot we picked. Plus, they donated the lodge for all our cast and crew for the production period.
What is your favorite scene?
It’s definitely the final scene at the top of the mountain.
What is your favorite line?
“He stands on the top of a mountain, dotted with debris of hope.”
What does it mean to have your film selected as a category nominee by the Arpa International Film Festival?
First of all, I’m speechless and extremely happy to be selected by the Arpa International Film Festival and have a chance to watch Millennium: Eternal Sunrise at the renowned Egyptian Theatre. It’s a huge honor and success for all our crew and cast. From all our entire team, I would like to thank you very much for the selection.
Millennium: Eternal Sunrise (2015) | 11 min. | Fantasy | USA
Be sure to check out the trailer and get tickets!
Written by Sharon Swainson
Communications & Development Director
2016 Arpa International Film Festival