How was the fate of the actor who was called the best Soviet Tom Sawyer: Fyodor Stukov

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

He began acting in films very early, and after the first played the role of a charming baby, the directors literally bombarded him with proposals. His work in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn made him one of the most popular and recognizable children of the Soviet Union. How did Fyodor Stukov manage not to become infected with star fever, who became his guardian angel in life, and for what did he receive the TEFI award?

Fluke

His parents had nothing to do with cinema and, most likely, the idea that their boy could become an actor did not occur to them. It was a simple, intelligent family, the head of which served as an engineer, my mother was a literary editor, and my grandmother was a journalist for the popular Krokodil magazine.

By the age of five, Fedor himself had already managed to learn the taste of fame thanks to his studies in the Gosteleradio choir, in which he took part in large concerts. The attention of the public and the applause did not surprise him for a long time.

He got into the cinema almost by accident: in a minibus, an assistant director drew attention to him. She took her word of honor from the mother of the future actor to send a photo and all the personal data of a boy with a very characteristic appearance to the film studio.

His film debut was Nikita Mikhalkov's film "A few days in the life of I. I. Oblomov", where Fedor played the main character in childhood. The role was tiny, all you had to do was run across the field and rejoice at the arrival of mama. But the boy remembered his first experience in cinema for the rest of his life.

Later he had a chance to embody on the screen the image of the girl Irishka in Nikita Mikhalkov's film "Relatives". Ironically, the director rejected all young applicants for this role, and approved Fedor's candidacy.

The next work of Fyodor Stukov was the role of Tom Sawyer, which made him famous. Then the proposals from the directors fell on the boy, as if from a cornucopia. For two years, he starred in ten films, he was recognized on the streets and asked for an autograph. But he did not consider himself better than thousands of other peers who did not have the opportunity to act in films. Parents never created a halo of stardom around their son, but taught him to treat their roles as if they were an ordinary job.

They never left Fedor unattended at all, they were constantly present on the set. Mom became the actor's personal guardian angel, she was always there, even when the son was already out of childhood. She always gave him wise advice, was the first spectator and critic. After graduation, Fyodor Stukov entered the Shchukin School, then worked at the Werkstatt theater in Germany, but he never had the thought of staying abroad. In general, he felt that the acting profession was not quite his vocation.

Find yourself

Returning to his homeland, Fyodor Stukov went to work on television. However, this hobby had a basis, because back in 1981 he hosted the programs "Alarm Clock" and "Morning Mail". In the 1990s, television projects took over him entirely. He hosted many popular programs, including "Under 16 and Older", "Lego-Go!", "World Draws".

In his interviews, Fyodor Stukov admits: he was always interested in directing more, but he believed that a person without sufficient acting and life experience could not go into directing. Feeling sufficient confidence, accumulated emotions and feelings, Fyodor Stukov began to master a new direction of activity for himself.

First, he directed television projects, reality shows (including Behind the Glass), then began to shoot his own films and series. In 2009, Fyodor Stukov's documentary series “Concentration Camps. Road to hell . Bit by bit, he collected the memories of the prisoners of the Nazi camps, entries from their diaries, small notes.

The filming was not easy, but the result was a very poignant, heartbreaking series about the history of concentration camps from their creation in 1933 to their complete liquidation in 1945. This work was highly praised by viewers and critics, and in 2010 was awarded the TEFI national prize for the best documentary.

Dedication

Fyodor Stukov is very open during his interviews, but usually diligently avoids any questions about family and personal life. But after his TV series "The Eighties" was successfully shown on the screens of the country, the director admitted that he dedicated it to the dearest person in his life, which did not become during the filming of the first season.

This was an unexpected and bitter loss in his life, from which it was very difficult to recover. But next to Fedor, his beloved wife Katya remained, with whom he has been together for more than 17 years.

It was a classic office romance, when cooperation in one of the projects led first to a strong friendship, and then to the emergence of romantic feelings. Ekaterina Stukova is a producer and, as the director admits, his main assistant and a person you can rely on in everything. She is also the mother of their son Timofey, who was born in 2007.

Today Fyodor Stukov can rightfully call himself a successful director. He himself admits that since filming "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn" in him, apart from age, nothing has changed much. He has remained the same cheerful, spontaneous and passionate as 40 years ago.

Film "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn" opened the way to big cinema for young actors who played the main roles - Fyodor Stukov, Vladislav Galkin and Maria Mironova. Many viewers who later became their fans did not even suspect that their film career began with this film. As well as the fact that they could see Igor Sorin in the lead role - the same one from Ivanushki International - who, as a result, got the cameo role of Joe Harper.