Actor Pevtsov on spiritual war against West: "We can't be defeated, so they destroy us from within"

Dmitry Pevtsov received a special prize from the President of Belarus for preserving spiritual traditions in cinema at the Listapad Film Festival. Interestingly, upon receiving such an honorable award, the artist experienced completely different feelings than in his youth. "I'm already over 60, and I was pleased, of course, but I wasn't nervous; that hasn't happened for a long time," he admitted.

People's Artist of Russia Dmitry Pevtsov

Today, acting has taken a backseat to him. His life has become filled with other, equally interesting pursuits: teaching, working with youth, and his own film studio, where he's trying his hand as a screenwriter and director. Furthermore, his work in the State Duma takes up a significant portion of his time.

"There's plenty to do in the Duma; helping people takes up a lot of time. I consider that a deputy's job. But I'm not a politician; for me, working in the Duma is about expanding my opportunities to help people," the actor explained.

Speaking about spiritual traditions in cinema, Dmitry Pevtsov expresses serious concern about contemporary trends: "We've long been living in the paradigm of our enemies, who are trying to destroy the Russian world through the internet. No one needs it. They need our resources, slaves, and trade routes, but we, as a civilization, are of no use to them."

The artist is convinced that the main threat comes from within: "The West doesn't understand that if we don't exist, they won't exist either. They're trying to destroy us, primarily from within, because it's impossible to defeat us from the outside. This is the most important task that needs to be addressed now: we need to stop this destruction and lead us back to where we came from—to faith, God, conscience, love, and a normal family. This is essential work right now."

Dmitry Pevtsov is particularly concerned about the loss of "moral immunity" in younger generations: "I grew up with moral immunity. We understood what was good and what was bad. Now, several generations have grown up who don't understand what is bad. And cinema is a bearer of ideology; Americans discovered this long ago. But ideology, like seasoning, needs to be present in cinema just a little bit, and then it works."

People's Artist of Russia Dmitry Pevtsov

Speaking about contemporary cinema, Dmitry Pevtsov doesn't hide his disappointment. He says he hasn't seen a single film in the last 20 years that he'd want to rewatch: "There's not a single film in the last 20 years that I've seen and said, 'That's a good movie, I need to watch it again,'" he says.

The artist sees the commercialization of art as the main problem: "The problem is that, basically, 99% of the time, any project begins with the producer asking, 'How are we going to make money this time?'" This is a cynical approach that cannot result in true art."

At the same time, Dmitry Pevtsov openly advocates for the introduction of censorship, citing the lack of a clear ideological foundation in modern Russia.

Despite such a critical view of the contemporary cultural situation, the actor finds reasons for optimism. He says he sees many talented people who think differently than "cynical producers."

"I'm an optimist; I see that there are true artists and people who care, who don't think about money," he says.

Listapad Film Festival

He places particular hopes on the generation that has lived through modern geopolitical obstacles: "The guys who are arriving now from the North-Eastern Front will, among other things, create new Russian art."

As for his personal creative plans, his approach has remained unchanged: Dmitry Pevtsov only participates in projects where he sees meaning and an idea, and not simply an opportunity to demonstrate his acting skills.