World War II comes to a humble Russian village on the eve of Anton's (Benjamin Bonenfant) wedding along with the foreboding presence of NKVD officer Vasily (Geoffrey Dean). Two years later Anton has left behind his pious wife Katya (Megan LeFurge) and is fulfilling his patriotic duty in the Red Army. After seeing first hand the brutalities of the front within his own army, Anton risks all on a daring attempt to return home behind enemy lines.
06/17/2010 - STUDENT AWARD in U.S. International Film and Video Festival
05/06/2010 - Named "Finalist" in the national competition in consideration for the 37th Student Academy Awards. Award Ceremony June 12, 2010.
04/21/2010 - The Last Bogatyr is 1 of 3 Films in Region II in consideration for The Student Academy Awards and will play publically in Chicago, IL April 26th, 2010. Judging to be concluded mid-may.
03/25 - 04/2/2010 - The Last Bogatyr team attends LOS ANGELES WOMENS INTERNATIONAL Film Festival
03/09/2010 - Official Selection of Indie Spirit Film Festival, Colorado Springs, CO April 23 - 25, 2010.
01/27/2010 - The Last Bogatyr screens atShort Circuit, CO, USA. Q&A with director Sarah R. Lotfi to follow.
01/26/2010 - Official Selection of Los Angeles Womens International Film Festival, March 26 - April 1, 2010
01/11/ 2010
Official Selection of Tiburon International Film Festival, March 18th - 26th 2010
01/ 02/ 2010
Official Selection of International Film Festival Ireland, September 2010
12/24/2009
Official Selection of International Youth Film Festival, South Talbot, Wales, patron Sir Anthony Hopkins. August 2010
10/18/2009 - The Last Bogatyr screens at The Moving Image Film Festival in Toronto, Canada.
Student Academy Awards Finalists Named| The Wrap I Los Angeles, CA
May 06, 2010, STEVE POND
Student Academy Awart Finalists Announced| Indie Wire I Chicago, IL
May 06, 2010, PETER KNEGT
Lotfi Advances to Nationals in the StudentAcademy Awards I The Gazette I Colorado Springs, CO
April 23, 2010, TODD WALLINGER
The Last Epic Hero|Reviews | Chicago, IL
Bluce Streak
April 04, 2010, GWYDHAR BRATTON
Making the cut|Reviews | Colorado Springs, Independent
January 21st - 28th, 2010, JILL THOMAS
The Lon and the short of it| Cover Story | Colorado Springs, Independent
November 19th -25th, 2009, JILL THOMAS
The Last Bogatyr is currently entering festival route for the 2009-2010 season.
Location,
Location
The filmmakers were granted access to The Holy Theophany: St. Helens and Constantine, a Russian Orthodox Church tucked away in the heart of Colorado Springs.
Fr. Anthony Karbo of the Theophany agreed to portray the priest in the film. Actor Benjamen Bonenfant comments on how the location played into building the character of Anton: "The feel of being inside the church contributed a reverence to what we were doing that we couldn't have found anywhere else. Between takes I would ask Fr. Anthony about ritual and liturgy. He really brought the experience to life for my character."
Braving the Storm
Recreating the war scenes was one of the biggest challenges for the filmmakers on The Last Bogatyr. With winter storm warnings on alert, cast and crew were taking a gamble shooting.
"When we arrived on location the weather was still warm and sunny, by the time we were ready to shoot the skies were fully overcast but the weather held", recalls cinematographer Cheri Williams, "Finding that perfect shot with just the right feel is so pivotal to create a poignant film. In our case, the overcast clouds enhanced our shots the dark clouds in the backdrop really emulate the dismal desperation of a war-zone"...CONT'D
CONT'D...With support from World War II living history re-enactors and a local pyrotechnic company, the battle sprung into action on The Last Bogatyr. The pyrotechnic crew worked to stage a safe line of fire alongside the soldier formations. Local re-enactors volunteered their time and equipment to participate in the film.
"The re-enactors brought with them a whole level of reality," remarks Lotfi, "Their attention to detail equals any actors character development." One of the films consultants and re-enactors, Jon Ainsworth says: "Fine strokes are sometimes needed to compliment the broad stroke of History. Working on this piece helped me contribute to that fine stroke. "
Behind the haunting original-score on The Last Bogatyr is Irish cellist Claire Fitch. Lotfi came in contact with Fitch while working together on Tudor Rose (2008). The partnership was carried out long distance, with Claire composing from Ireland and Lotfi overseeing the edit in America.
"With no dialogue in The Last Bogatyr, the music had to be the emotional compass for the film," explains Lotfi, "It was really important for me that we brought in the eastern feel to the score. Claires deft arrangement of cello and ethnic instruments on such a lush and layered soundscape echo Antons journey into a dream-like Russia."
The Sound of "Bogatyr"
September 2010
International Film Festival Ireland
Clonmel, County Tipperary, IRELAND
November 2010
International Student Film Festival Hollywood
Hollywood, CA, USA
August 8, 2010
International Youth Film Festival
SOUTH TALBOT, WALES
June 22, 2010
U.S. International Film & Video Festival
Los Angeles, CA USA
April 26, 2010 Gene Siskel Center
Region II 37th Student Academy Awards
CHICAGO, IL, USA
April 24, 2010
Indie Spirit Film Festival
COLORADO SPRINGS, CO, USA
March 29, 2010
Los Angeles Womens Film Festival
LOS ANGELES, CA, USA
March 18-25th 2010
Tiburon International Film Festival
TIBURON, CA, USA
January 27th, 2010
COLORADO SHORT CIRCUIT Showcase
October 18th, 2009
Moving Image Film Festival
"Blockbuster Bonanza"
TORONTO, CANADA
When the war comes to his doorstep, Anton enlists and finds himself fighting not only the enemy but his own conscience...
Benjamin is a theatre student at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs. He has performed in several student productions and independent plays since coming to UCCS as well as appeared onstage with Theatreworks in such productions as Cyrano de Bergerac (Christian de Neuvillette), As You Like It (Silvius), Wit (Dr. Jason Posner), and Urinetown (Bobby Strong) among others. This summer he will be performing as Claudio in the Colorado Shakespeare Festival's production of Much Ado About Nothing, and he plans to continue acting onstage in Colorado Springs and abroad as he pursues a career in theatre and potentially film. The Last Bogatyr is Benjamins on camera debut.
Ingrained in his duties as as an officer in the NKVD Vasily drifts farther away from his old friends.
Geoffrey was born in Tacoma, Washington and has long since grown up all over the place from Colorado to Visbaden, Germany. Geoffrey has gone to school with Sarah since the sixth grade. In highschool he acted in the theater productions and student films including one of Sarahs early works Jane Bond: Shelter (2006). Geoff expects to graduate from the ROTC program in Wyoming next spring. Meanwhile he still finds time to perfect his own screenplay that will be coming life shortly.
Ever hopeful Katya turns her eyes from the war and must come to terms with the inevitable fate that awaits her love.
Megan is a jazz singer, artist's model, and singer/song writer based in (soon to be) Manitou Springs, Colorado. While at UCCS, she studied world music, opera singing, jazz singing, drawing, poetry, and percussion. One of the highlights of her life was studying gamelan music and temple dance for a month abroad in Bali, Indonesia. She recently began studying the guitar and ukulele.
Sarah R. Lotfi
Sarah studies film at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs. In 2005 she formed White Cloud Productions. Recent works include award-winning short Tudor Rose (2008) and Chroma Planet of Color (2010), for which she was honored by her university as an Independent Scholar Award recipient. In 2009, She assisted in hosting the Intersections Film Festival featuring women filmmakers from the Middle East. In 2010 she was part of the national college tv internship with the Emmy Foundation on HBO Film's production of CInema Veritae (2012)
Cheri Williams
Cheri is an independent director of photography studying Communication at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs. Her recent projects include Chroma: Planet of Color (2009), in which she was the first assistant director, and the documentary short Quietus (2008) that she directed and edited. Currently Cheri works editor for a documentary about the Colorado State Fair. The Last Bogatyr (2009) is the third film Cheri has collaborated on with Sarah R.Lotfi
Nathan Ward
Nathan was born and raised at the United States Air Force Academy near Colorado Springs and grew up taking photos. While attending Pikes Peak Community College, he discovered his love for motion pictures while working as an operator in the Master Control room and transfered to UCCS to start a degree in Recording Arts. He will be moving to California in 2010 where he will attend California State University, Northridge for a Bachelor of Arts in Film Production. He wants to grow his knowledge of, and passion for editing, and hopes to continue editing in the professional movie industry.
Claire Fitch
Claire started to play the cello at 14, and studied at Birmingham Conservatoire and the Royal Academy of Music. Fitchsounds is Claire's award- winning music production company, providing music for games, film, corporate video, theatre and television. Clients include Intel, AMD, Adobe, Blender Institute, Riverdeep and Forfas. As a recording artist, she has contributed to various film soundtracks and has performed with artists such as U2, Shania Twain, Riverdance, Elmer Bernstein and John Barry. Claire works regularly with the National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland, The Orchestra of St.Cecelia and the Irish Film orchestra.
Dustin Dunaway
Dustin is a film critic and guest lecturer at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs. He received BAs in Communication and Visual and Performing Arts from UCCS in 2008. He is a former production assistant for Flying Tiger Films and started Cool Channel Films in 2004. In 2005, he became a film critic and commentator for 411Mania.com. He has written and directed two shorts Agoraphobia (2004) and Some Must Sleep (2008). The Last Bogatyr (2009) is the third film he has produced for Sarah Lotfi.
Kevin J. Beechwood
Kevin is a student majoring in Film Studies and Recording Arts at the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs. Kevin is a cinematographer who has a great passion for film and has had many opportunities to document his travels throughout the world. Kevin recently was awarded Best Documentary at the 2009 UCCS Film Festival for a short about the silent film actor Lon Chaney. He is a co-founder of the electronic music festival company Space Dub Vibrations. Kevin also has a strong background in science and the ancient teachings of mysticism of many cultures
Cooper Christian
Cooper was born in Hollywood, California. He fell in love with the industry at an early age. This leadled him to start Liquid Desert LLC in 2008 to finally pursue a career in eEntertainment. After watching Sarah Lotfi's first film, Tudor Rose, he decided that this tour of force was one to watch rise and shine. With an offer to assist in Chroma, it. It is with pride that Cooper and Liquid Desert LLC helps present The Last Bogatyr.
Jon Parris
Jon studies Mechanical Engineering at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs. Photography and videography are his creative outlet. He is a son, brother, husband, and father. He lives in the downtown Colorado Springs with his wife, who he loves very much.
For more information or to request a press kit or screener please use the contact form.
David R. Nelson
Rick Sweet
UCCS Media Center
Simon & Ira Scionka
Fr. Anthony Karbo
