Grigory Amnuel, whose mother's nationality is German, has recently taken an increasingly prominent place in the media space. He is a director and politician who often makes controversial and ambiguous judgments. At the same time, the maximum activity in public life he exhibits in Latvia.
Director's biography
Grigory Amnuel admits that nationality never caused him any particular problems. He is known to the general public primarily as a director. documentaries. Most of his paintings are on religious themes or deal with government issues. He also owns several journalistic articles and books.
Grigory Amnuel, whose nationality, although German, is a native Muscovite. He was born in the Russian capital in 1957. His maternal relatives moved from Latvia to Moscow during the first revolution, Grigory Amnuel lifts the veil of secrecy about his family history. At that time, few people were interested in their nationality. Therefore, in their home archives, photographs of Kaliningrad, Tallinn and Jurmala of that period have been preserved in abundance. You can still see the old German names in the pictures.
Relatives of Amnuel Grigory Markovich did not fall under the millstones of repression. But over time, the Soviet Union began to experience difficulties because of their origin. For example, his mother was not accepted in due time because of her German roots.
Amnuel's personal life
Amnuel Grigory Markovich himself, after school, entered the Pedagogical Institute in Tobolsk. Higher education he received at the Faculty of History.
Details of his childhood and youth are not preserved. He himself is reluctant to talk about this period of his life. It is only known that it was during his student years in Tobolsk that Grigory Amnuel married. The family, however, did not come out strong. Soon the newlyweds broke up, not converging in character.
After some time, the hero of our article concluded the second official marriage. When he was 23 years old, he married a Latvian girl. In 1981 their daughter was born. At that time, Amnuel had already graduated from the institute in Tobolsk and lived in Tallinn.
creative career
Director Grigory Amnuel for the first time in a creative environment announced himself in Moscow theaters. On the theater stage of the capital, he began working as a director. He worked in the theater of comedy and drama on Taganka, in the theater of Satire on
On the stage of the Theater of Tolerance, he carried out a joint project with the Americans called "Crime in Laramie". He has acted as a producer at many independent film festivals in Europe. For example, he oversaw the festival of Russian cinema and culture, which was held annually in France and Italy.
Amnuel the Documentary
Director Grigory Amnuel made several dozen sports and documentary films. The brightest of them were "Redlich - people from the other side." The picture tells about the tragic fate of Russians who survived the emigration of 1917. The film is dedicated to the Russian philosopher Roman Nikolaevich Redlich. His fate is somewhat similar to the fate of Gregory Amnuel. The biography begins with the fact that both were born in a family of Russified Germans.
Redlich emigrated with his family to Germany in 1933. Graduated from Berlin University. In 1940 he became a member of the People's Labor Union of Russian Solidarists. They opposed Hitler and Stalin, calling to be only with the Russian people.
Throughout the Second World War, he promoted the ideas of this organization. He was engaged in propaganda in the camps of Soviet prisoners of war, created cells of the Union in the territories occupied by the Germans. As a result, in 1944 the German political police put him on the wanted list for conducting anti-German activities. Until the end of the war, he had to hide under the pseudonym "Captain Vorobyov".
After the end of the war he was actively engaged in science. He developed a direction in Russian philosophy, which he called "solidarism". He returned to his homeland in 1991. Continuing to develop the ideas of the people's labor union already in modern Russia. He died in Wiesbaden in 2005. He was 94 years old.
For this film, Grigory Amnuel received a diploma from the international film festival of human rights films "Stalker". His biography has many film awards.
Amnuel's confession
Many of Amnuel's films, both documentary and sports, have often received prestigious awards and prizes.
In 1991, for the painting "Awakening, a Chronicle of Turning Days," he received a medal from Russian President Boris Yeltsin as a defender of a free Russia. Grigory Amnuel, whose filmography includes dozens of films, received awards for sports film masterpieces.
Sports films
In 1993, the director received a prize at the International Film Festival in Moscow for the film "Almost an American Russian", as well as a prize for the best film about the Russian Ice Hockey Federation.
For the film "Fire and Ice" was awarded the Sports Film Festival in Milan for the best reportage film. In 1995 he was already noted by the Olympic Committee for "Christmas dream, or a portrait against the background of hockey" Grigory Amnuel. The filmography of the director does not end there. Moreover, he was not limited to work in the cinema.
During that period, he actively made journalistic programs and programs on domestic television, including on central channels, as well as in the Latvian media. In his analytical projects, he touched upon the topics of Russia with the Baltic countries, raised controversial and controversial historical issues.
Work in the media and creativity
AT Russian culture Amnuel was first seriously noticed when he became the organizer of a tour of the famous Soviet-Latvian violinist in Moscow. Amnuel organized his first performances in the capital in the late 80s and early 90s. The maternal relatives of the musician were partly of German origin. In this they were similar to the hero of this article.
Amnuel also acted as the organizer of the once popular festival "Lockinghausen Music". He repeatedly brought the chamber music orchestra of the Cologne Philharmonic to Russia with concerts.
From his latest initiatives. In 2015, he proposed to erect a monument to the director of the library of foreign literature, Ekaterina Genieva, who has worked in this library for more than 40 years. In April 2016, the monument appeared in the courtyard of the cultural institution. Amnuel took upon himself all the financial costs of installing the monument.
Amnuel also proved himself as a music producer. Participated in organizing the filming of clips by Anatoly Gerasimov, Lyubov Kazarnovskaya and Viktor Popov.
Public and political activities
As a politician, Grigory Amnuel began to show himself on the pages of the socio-political magazine "Posev". In it, he repeatedly published his journalistic opuses. This edition is rich in history. This is the official journal of the People's Labor Union, one of whose propagandists was Redlich. It has been published continuously since 1945.
AT last years Amnuel heads the discussion club "International Dialogue". The purpose of this organization is to conduct all kinds of events related to culture, science and the social sphere. The club has a school where anyone can get acquainted with European countries and form their own opinion about their international cooperation with Russia. At least, that's what the initiators of the club say.
Amnuel also holds the post of deputy CEO Russian-American company "ASK", which was established in 1987 for the joint partnership of the then Soviet and American filmmakers. Manages the European division of this company.
In recent years, he has been actively invited to participate in various round tables and discussions on the problems of the Baltic countries, the Caucasus, as well as mutual cooperation between Russia and NATO countries.
Why is Russophobia on the rise?
You visit Russia and, unlike many others, you try to understand the position of our country. In addition, do not forget about the Donbass, carry humanitarian cargo - you feel all the pain of the situation. But why don't Western colleagues do the same? What are the reasons for the rampant Russophobia in the West, in your opinion?
You know, I'm interested in this question myself. With my friends in France, we have been working on the site "Stop Russophobie" for half a year now. If you have French-speaking TV viewers, they can watch. Our goal is to fight Russophobia, the level of which is only growing.
Why is Russophobia on the rise? Because they encourage it! Just as they literally fabricated Monsieur Macron, they artificially fabricate Russophobia - through manipulation in the media, through tales about "Chechen gays", through exaggeration and exaggeration of individual facts.
Of course, Russia is not an ideal state, but I don't know any ideal ones either. No country in the world is perfect, because we are all human beings. Russia has both disadvantages and advantages. Whether we love it or not, Russia is the way it is. Yet the West is fueling Russophobia. For very simple reasons.
Britain began with the capture of gold
There is one very important thought that I always try to convey to friends: you can’t consider modern history as a result of random circumstances. What happened in Libya, Syria, Chechnya, Georgia, Ukraine - all this is a continuation of the war that has existed for centuries. If you do not look at it in a historical perspective, it is very difficult to understand what is happening today.
The British aristocracy, this small group of people, had a desire to conquer the world as early as the 16th century. Then the pirate Francis Drake committed circumnavigation and returned on a ship loaded with gold and diamonds. He gave half of the booty to Queen Elizabeth I of England. Some historical sources claim that half of the loot was 1.5 of the entire British budget.
And when at the court of Elizabeth they saw how this man brought so much wealth, they came up with the idea: if it’s so easy to plunder good and make the state rich, then you can conquer the whole world!
A little later, Walter Raleigh put it this way: "Who rules the sea, rules commerce. Who rules commerce, rules the world's wealth. Who rules the world's wealth, rules the world."
Then, three centuries later, this formula was used by Halford John Mackinder in his concept of Rimland and Heartland. I think the decision of the British aristocracy in the 16th century can be considered a starting point, and this worldview was passed down from generation to generation of elites.
If we look at any European wars, from the 16th century to the present, we see the fall of Philip II of Spain, of France (the period from Louis XIV to Napoleon Bonaparte). Then the list was replenished with two other mighty powers - Germany and Russia. Moreover, Germany was used as a tool in the fight against Russia, including by funding Hitler ...
Only Russia remained free - they are hitting it
Thus, the main Western states - France, Spain, Italy, Austria, Germany - unwittingly fell into this Western bloc.
The President of the French Republic, Macron, is today receiving orders from the City of London. So did Ms Merkel. None of the current European leaders is really independent. There is only one free state in Eurasia left - Russia.
That is why they provoke the actions of terrorists, that is why the wars in Chechnya, Georgia, and Ukraine come from. This is a continuation of the old struggle waged by the Anglo-Saxons from century to century. That's why you are the last ones still free. It is all the more important to protect your features, your history, your religion. It's the most important.
Can we hope that our free country will maintain friendly relations with France?
There is a fear that despite the election of Macron, relations with Russia will continue. I think Macron is still smarter than Hollande in this. In any case, the meeting between Macron and Putin at Versailles suggests some success.
And if in the City of London he is told to go for rapprochement with Russia, he will go, for example, to ease sanctions. But I think that Macron's problem today (like Merkel's) is to clarify who is in charge: the City or Wall Street? This is a serious question for European globalists to ask.
The war in the Donbass will be dragged out indefinitely
Since we have already mentioned Frau Merkel, it is worth remembering the upcoming meeting in the format of the Normandy Four - the leaders of Russia, France, Germany and Ukraine. Is it worth waiting for positive outcomes of the negotiations?
Complex issue. It is in the interests of the Anglo-Saxons today to complete what they started. That is, take Moscow. Today, Donbass is in a crisis situation, and their task is to support this as long as possible. Because it weakens Russia.
It is obvious that any crisis near the Russian borders weakens the country both economically and diplomatically. My wife and I visit the Donbass, and there are no Russian soldiers there - only the people's militia and volunteers. And this proves that there are real men who yearn for freedom for this land, who are fighting for a greater Russia - for Novorossia.
But the Anglo-Saxon forces are trying to drag out this crisis indefinitely. And this will not stop until the Ukrainian regime collapses and until Mr. Poroshenko is driven out.
It is obvious that the puppet of the West has taken the place of the ruler of Ukraine. Therefore, the Azov battalion, the Right Sector (organizations banned in Russia - ed.), and all these crazy radicals will continue to terrorize the inhabitants of Donbass. I'm afraid it can't be stopped under the current circumstances.
I think that the meeting of the Normandy Four is marketing. Although I understand that Russia is trying to maintain a dialogue with Germany and France in such discussions.
I think that Russia (more precisely, Vladimir Putin) will continue to support diplomatic relations with both countries, to at least give them a chance to gain independence from the thalassocratic power - that is, from London and Washington. Serious politicians sit around the table and discuss how this crisis can be resolved. Stop the situation in which civilians - men, women, children - die daily under bombs ...
But, unfortunately, the policy pursued by both Sarkozy and Macron implies subordination to foreign interests. The fate of France and Germany is decided by NATO and the European Union.
Therefore, I do not expect anything from the meeting of the Normandy Four. I think, unfortunately, the situation in Donbas will not change as long as Poroshenko and his extremist cronies are in power.
“Now there are comments that the state of emergency is not really very effective. In addition, Hollande announced that they would reinforce the police and the army, which, it must be admitted, are exhausted. They have been working very hard for 6 months - constantly and everywhere. After all, the European Championship was recently held. And do not forget that the entire army is abroad, because they are fighting in Africa, and in Iraq, and in Syria,” said Dmitry de Koshko, chairman of the Coordinating Council of Russian Compatriots in France, who gave several interviews to Russian media today.
“The fact is that the Tunisian terrorist who crushed all these people is a local. He is Tunisian, but he is local. He lived in Nice, worked in Nice, he even had a family in Nice. So here the problem is much deeper, unfortunately, than just ensuring control over the border. This is a problem that touches the very essence of French society today.”
“You can ask yourself the question - why are there so many criminals among these people? Probably, when he was in prison, he was “infected with Islamism”, because in prisons, unfortunately, many young people accept Islamism, and then some of them become terrorists.”
"I hope that they will finally deal with the real enemy, and not the fake one, not be mistaken by the enemies." According to de Catschko, the French media have made Russia the main enemy of France, while in fact French society is infected with terror from within.
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Dimitri de Koshko is a professional journalist who worked for 33 years at Agence France Presse. The biography of his family is very interesting. At the origins of the family was Fedor Koshka - the "commandant" of Moscow during the battle of Dmitry Donskoy on the Kulikovo field ...
Those representatives of the family who remained in Russia became Koshkins, and representatives of the branch to which Dmitry belongs fled from the oprichnina to Lithuania and became Koshkos.
Dmitry's great-grandfather, General Arkady Frantsevich Koshko, led the Moscow detective police, and then was in charge of the later head of all criminal investigation Russian Empire. He is considered the founder of domestic criminology, "Russian Sherlock Holmes". In particular, he developed a new personal identification system based on a special classification of anthropometric and fingerprint data. Subsequently, it was borrowed by Scotland Yard. It was thanks to him that in 1913 Russia took first place in the world in terms of the number of crimes solved!
By the way, they say that it was at the suggestion of Koshko on the lapel of his jacket that Moscow detectives began to wear a badge with the inscription "MUS" - the Moscow Criminal Investigation, thanks to which the well-known nickname "garbage" was attached to the policemen in the future.
After the revolution of 1917, his estate was destroyed by the Bolsheviks. When he learned that he would soon be arrested, he was forced to flee. First to Kyiv, then he moved to the Crimea, then to Turkey, and in 1923 he received political asylum in France. He worked in a fur shop. The British offered him a leadership position in Scotland Yard, but he refused to change citizenship - he hoped to return to his homeland. He wrote three volumes of memoirs - “Essays on the criminal world of Tsarist Russia. Memoirs of the former head of the Moscow detective police and head of the entire criminal investigation department of the Empire”, two films were created based on them: the serial film “Kings of the Russian Investigation” with Armen Dzhigarkhanyan in the title role and the film “The Adjuster” with Alla Demidova, Nina Ruslanova and Renata Litvinova.
And the Russian public association of veterans of operational services "Honor" in January 2007 established a public award - the Order named after Arkady Frantsevich Koshko. This order is awarded to both veterans of detective work and current employees of the criminal investigation department.