National award "STRANA" is an annual open creative competition of works of Russian TV reporters, directors, operators, producers and musicians, which is organized with support of the Union of Cinematographers of the Russian Federation and the Committee on Culture of the State Duma. National award "STRANA" is created for assistance to advancement of the best television works, author, intellectual cinema, opening of new names, unification of TV workers under the common idea — show the real life of the country to a Russian spectator and preserve the best traditions of national TV and cinema.
We nurtured the idea of creation of such an award for a long time, I even can tell more: necessity of such competition in our country has appeared a long time ago. The National award« STRANA» has very ambitious tasks and big prospects. I am sure of it, because this award essentially differs from all competitions in the field of cinematography and television existing today in Russia.
Firstly, the National award "STRANA" has as its principal and priority task the impartiality, independence from political parties, from organized influential directors’ and producers’ "parties", from presence (or absence) of financial assets for "promotion" and advancement of any film, program or musical clip.
Secondly, the geography of the award covers all country, including its most remote places. Creative competitions are carried out nowadays either by the initiative of local authorities and are limited to one or two regions or in the centre of the capital where all participants "cook" among themselves within the Garden Ring. The national award "STRANA" is created to find talents in cities, boroughs and villages of our motherland, appraise them and lead them "to the public". That also is the third and most important difference. The national award gives the chance to present works of talented people to the mainstream audience on the federal TV channel "STRANA". Daily during the year there is a place in the program schedule for both "festival" and simply young and talented cinema. Everybody, even those who have not won, but have passed the preliminary selection, have the right to be shown on the TV channel.
We hope and we will do everything to realize our ambitious plans. We will do everything in order the National award would reach the level of international awards, would have trust of participants and spectators who are tired of dull commercial films. We search for the works which have been made with heart, with pain or love for the country, city, village, home … We search for the films which are made not because of money, but because it is impossible to be silent. The national award "STRANA" has found support from the Union of Cinematographers and from the Committee on Culture of the State Duma.
