Experiencing Interruptions?

My Carpathian Grandpa

Young Italian Michele, who has Ukrainian roots, goes to an abandoned Carpathian village to dispel the dust of his mother. Here he meets his grandfather Michael. This unexpected meeting changes their lives forever.

  • Zaza Buadze
    Director
    Mother of Apostles, Escape from the Stalin's death camp, Call sign "Banderas"
  • Zaza Buadze
    Writer
  • Grigoris Karantinakis
    Writer
  • Andriy Suyarko
    Producer
  • Bohdan Benyuk
    Key Cast
    "Mykhailo"
  • Simone Costa
    Key Cast
    "Mikele"
  • Iryna Benyuk
    Key Cast
    "Nina"
  • Project Type:
    Feature
  • Runtime:
    1 hour 56 minutes
  • Completion Date:
    August 1, 2023
  • Production Budget:
    980,000 EUR
  • Country of Origin:
    Ukraine
  • Country of Filming:
    Italy, Ukraine
  • Language:
    Italian, Ukrainian
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    2.35:1
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
Distribution Information
  • Svoe Kino
    Sales Agent
    Country: Worldwide
    Rights: All Rights
Director Biography - Zaza Buadze

Zaza Buadze (born 4 August 1962, Kutaisi, Georgian SSR) - Georgian film director, screenwriter. Has Georgian citizenship and has been a resident and working in Ukraine since 2008. Works in genres: drama, crime, short. She speaks Georgian, Persian, English, Ukrainian, and Russian.
Education:
2009-2010 - Mediterranean Film Institute script workshop (Nissiros, Samos, Greece)
2002-2003 - Nipkow program scholarship (Berlin, Germany)
1987-1990 - Higher courses of directors and screenwriters (Moscow), workshop of Sergey Solovyov.
1979-1984 - Tbilisi State University. Faculty of Oriental Studies. Persian and Persian literature.
Directors Filmography:
2023 My Carpathian Grandpa (feature)
2018 Callsign Banderas (feature)
2017 Chervony (feature)
2015 Nikonov and Company (TV series) 2013 And God Stepped into the Void (short) 2010 Sun (TV film)

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

My Carpathian Grandpa is a tragicomedy.
The script is based on the themes of coming of age, problems arising from it and regrettable mistakes that we make in our adulthood. These themes are personified by two main characters of our film – an Italian teenager and his Ukrainian grandfather. On the one hand, there is the all-or-nothing mindset of Michele, a 16-year-old carefree egoist, and on the other the wisdom of his 70-year-old grandfather Mykhailo, a downhearted retired circus clown. Blood-related but apparently foreign in mind and unable to understand each other, they draw closer step by step and discover each other and the entirely new world through emotions, regrets, repentance… and love! Step by step, both realize the true values and essence of human existence: coping with everyday life and mending one’s own flaws in pursuit of dreams. Interconnected, different episodes from different times complement each other and help create emotional tension that rises up to the point where all lines merge into one!