Perestroika The Movie- Press Kit- Cast & Others

Sam Robards is a virtual chameleon among character actors, having appeared in over fifty movies and TV shows. Mr. Robards, familiar to New York theater goers, was nominated for a Tony award in 2002, for his feature role in Arthur Miller's "The Man Who Had All The Luck."

His first movie saw him directed by Paul Mazursky in "The Tempest", and he hasn’t stopped since. He has taken prominent parts in Robert Altman's "Pret a Porter", "Bright Lights, Big City", "Casualties of War", "American Beauty", "Life as a House", "Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle", and Steven Spielberg's "Artificial Intelligence". Mr. Robards is familiar to TV viewers for his many appearances in series ranging from "The West Wing" to "Gossip Girl".

Slava Tsukerman found Mr. Robards the ideal fit for the difficult and complex role of Sasha, who, on the cusp of middle age, finds both his political and sexual identities hopelessly divided.

Academy Award winner F. Murray Abraham is often thought of as a European, and indeed he has been honored by the Italian government for his contributions as an artist of Italian descent. But Mr. Abraham was born in Pittsburgh, PA, to Italian and Syrian parents. While he is best known for his brilliant portrayal of Mozart's driven rival, Salieri, in "Amadeus", Mr. Abraham has starred in many outstanding features both in the US and abroad. In a career that spans over thirty years he’s played Stalin, Abraham Lincoln, the Viceroy of Peru, and Al Capone twice! He’s played major parts in Brian De Palma’s "Scarface", Woody Allen's "Mighty Aphrodite", "The Last Action Hero", "Star Trek: Insurrection", and opposite Sean Connery in both "Finding Forrester", and "The Name of the Rose". He’s traveled the world to make both theatrical and TV films, and has played everything from Mafiosi in Italian productions like "Excellent Cadavers", to biblical characters ranging from Lot in "Noah’s Ark", to Mordecai in the story of "Esther".

Mr. Abraham has recently been acclaimed in both New York and London for two classic roles; Shylock in Shakespeare's "Merchant of Venice", and Barabas in Christopher Marlowe's "The Jew of Malta".

When she was a twelve year old, attending the Bank Street School in New York, Ally Sheedy wrote a story that became a best selling children's book. But her career in writing took a detour after she appeared on TV's "Mike Douglas Show" and started to get work as a performer. Playing in TV and theater from the age of 15, Ms. Sheedy made her first big splash in a memorable TV movie about anorexic teenagers, "The Best Little Girl in the World". Other distinguished work in television continued, including a recurring role in "Hill Street Blues". But a part in "Bad Boys" playing Sean Penn's girlfriend and major rolls in "War Games" opposite Mathew Broderick and "Oxford Blues" with Rob Lowe, turned her into a movie star. That stardom was cemented with John Hughes seminal teen comedic drama "The Breakfast Club".

Ms. Sheedy's first adult role in the popular hit "St Elmo's Fire" opened a new chapter in her career. This Joel Schumacer directed hit was followed by a torrent of star turns in "Short Circuit", "Maid to Order", "Heart of Dixie", and many others. But it was as the drug possessed photographer in Lisa Cholodenko's "High Art" that saw Ms. Sheedy reinvent herself for a whole new audience. The doomed, tragic heroine of this highly acclaimed indie drama brought her an Independent Spirit Award for Best Female Performance of 1998 as well as the Los Angeles Film Critics Award. Since then Ms. Sheedy has been directed by a virtual who's who of independent filmmakers, including Allison Anders, Adrienne Shelley, and Michael Almereyda. Add to that name, Slava Tsukerman, who has cast her as the fiery wife of the deeply conflicted Astrophysicist, Sasha, in "Perestroika".

Jicky Schnee was a fashion model with an international profile who is rapidly making a name for herself as an actor, since 2004. Her first features were the US indies "Flavors" and Eric Schaeffer's "Mind the Gap". Since then Ms. Schnee has kept busy with TV roles in "Law and Order" and "Hope and Faith". She will soon appear in actor Justin Theroux's directing debut, "Dedication".

Slava Tsukerman selected Ms. Schnee, a native Texan for the roll of Jill, an American photographer and sometime lover of his protagonist, Sasha, after auditioning over 35 other actresses.

Millions of Russians know Oksana from her role in in the popular TV series "Mukhtar" and its sequel. After 240 episodes producers are planning on returning the show for another season. Oksana is currently appearing in two top rated series the drama, "Relatives", and the sitcom "Passion of Kino".

A versatile actress comfortable in both comedy and drama, Oksana has played 45 leading parts on stage and appeared in more than 40 feature and TV films.

Maria, who was born in the small, provincial city of Kirovograd, was discovered by Slava Tsukerman when he began his Moscow casting. When she came to meet him the writer/director was struck by her remarkable understanding of the character in his script. Tsukerman claims that the young actress opened his eyes with her insights into aspects of the character he had yet to explore himself.

One particular coincidence: in the recent film "Precipice", an adaptation of a classic Russian novel, Maria played the female lead opposite Stanislav Belyaev, who plays Sasha Greenberg at age 17 in "Perestroika".

One of the leading actors of "Mossovet Theater", a highly regarded Moscow repertory company, Andrey Sergeyev has also participated in 12 Russian feature films and TV series. He is also well known for the role of Trigorin, in Checkov's "The Seagull", which was made into a TV film after its successful theatrical run.

A native of Moscow, Slava Tsukerman is best known as the writer/director/producer of the cult classic "Liquid Sky". All totaled he has directed 43 films of various genres and has received 13 awards from international film festivals.

Mr. Tsukerman made his debut at the age of 21 with "I Believe in Spring", the first independently made short in the history of the Soviet Union. The film won first prize in the Moscow Amateur Film Festival and went on to take a prize at the international fest in Montreal.

Other films, "Great Bells", "The Heat In Cold Numbers", "Professor Alexandrov's Discovery", and "Vaudeville on Vaudeville" won the highest awards in the Soviet film industry. His documentary, "Once Upon a Time There Were Russians in Jerusalem" made for Israeli television, was a first prize winner at the Tenth Hollywood Festival of World Television.

"Liquid Sky", released in 1982, is one of the most successful true indies of all time. Praised by critics from the New York Times, New York magazine, Rolling Stone, and many national publications, it broke box office records in New York City and around the country. Working with a group of downtown actors and artists, Tsukerman presented a vision of New York completely different from any that had gone before. Vincent Canby, writing in the New York Times, said of Mr. Tsukerman, that "he seems to possess a rare and unusual talent."

"Liquid Sky’s unique mixture of poetic sci fi, off kilter sex and counter cultural angst has continued to captivate and provoke every manner of audience whenever it appears on TV or revival cinemas."

In 2001 Mr. Tsukerman directed "Poor Liza", in Russia, starring Ben Gazzara and Lee Grant. "Poor Liza" won two festival prizes in Russia. Anthology Film Archives said it was "unlike any other film you have ever seen".

In 2005 Mr. Tsukerman released his feature length documentary, "Stalin's Wife", to widespread critical applause. Andrew Sarris, writing in the New York Observer, said, "If you have the slightest curiosity about the people and the period, Stalin's Wife is mandatory viewing."

Alexander Zhurbin is one of the most important Russian composers of his generation. His music is widely performed throughout the former Soviet Union, Europe, Canada and the United States. He composes in a wide range of forms and styles: from symphonies to pop music, from chamber music to "new wave", from operas and ballets to movie scores.

His first big success came in 1975 with his rock-opera "Orpheus and Eurydice". This work was the first of its kind in the Soviet Union and was performed more than two thousand times. Over two million copies of the record were sold. For this opera, Mr. Zhurbin won many international awards, including "Star of the Year" in Great Britain.

Alexander Zhurbin also performs as an actor in "Perestroika", taking the role of one of Sasha's friends. As such he performs "Circle of Friends", which was composed especially for "Perestroika".

Born in the city of Novosibirsk, a city of 2 million located in Siberia, Ms. Kerova acted on stage from the age of 6. She began her work in media as a TV news writer, then as an assistant director, and finally as a director and writer of documentaries.

She attended the Soviet National Film Institute, where she studied screenwriting and cinema criticism and also the Moscow Institute of Culture, where she studied theater directing. She was also schooled in method acting.

Mr. Cohen, a native of Lancaster Pa, is the writer/director of the critically acclaimed feature, "Diamond Men", and winner of a National Board of Review citation for "Excellence in Filmmaking". He is also the writer/director of the indie comedic drama "Corporate Affairs", aka "Ted's MBA".

Mr. Cohen directed the long running theater piece "Other Than My Health I Have Nothing" with comedian Bruce Smirnoff. The show ran in Los Angeles for two years in a variety of venues, including The Odyssey Theater.

Robert Edwin Field was the executive producer of Slava Tsukerman's "Liquid Sky", "Stalin's Wife", and now "Perestroika". Robert was also executive producer of Dan Cohen's "Diamond Men".

Born in Moscow, Anna completed her secondary school education in Germany and then graduated from the Faculty of Television and Film at the Sorbonne University in Paris. She speaks fluent English, French, German and Russian.

Slava Tsukerman met Anna in NY where she worked as a producer for Russian Ethnic television and invited her to join his production team. After her work as the Associate Producer for "Perestroika", Anna went on to complete a producer's course at the European Producer's school, EAVE. Anna is a member of the European Producer's Network. She has just completed her producer's debut - a Russian-Swedish action film "Newsmakers" with the known Swedish director Anders Banke. The film is to be released in Russia and Sweden this spring.