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Born in Moscow in 1937, Andrei Konchalovsky is the son of the well-known writers Sergei Mikhalkov and Natalia Konchalovskaya. Grand son of the famous painter Piotr Konchalovsky and great grand son of Vassili Surikov, the classic of Russian art, he studied piano for twelve years, first at Music School, later at the Conservatory. After seeing Mikhaïl Kalatozov’s “The Cranes are Flying” he interrupted his music studies with the intention of devoted his energies to filmaking. He studied directing at VGIK (Moscow Film School) under Mikhail Romm, in the same class as Andrei Tarkovsky. Konchalovsky wrote for him the script of his short film “Steamroller and Violin” (1961) and was his assistant on “Ivan’s Childhood” (1962). They also co-wrote the script of “Andrei Rublev” (1969).
For his first feature film “The First Teacher” (1965), he chose the book by Chingis Aitmatov about the post-1917 Revolution period. His next film, “The Story of Asya Klyatchina” although made in 1966 was not released until a decade later because it failed to comply with the strict requirements of the Russian censorship of the period. “A Nest of Gentry” (1969) - a study of the 19th century aristocracy - was praised for its visual beauty but attacked by critics as mannered. Konchalovsky's powerful “Uncle Vanya” (1970), from the play by Chekhov, is regarded by many people as one of the best films in the Russian language ever but it was not until he made his next two films, “Romance for Lovers” (1974) and “Sibiriade” (1978) - a dramatic and realistic story of the lives of the people of Siberia -, that he became a worldwide famous filmmaker. Under the aegis of American and European producers, Konchalovsky made several English language films such as “Maria's Lovers” (1984), “Runaway Train” (1985), “Duet for One” (1986), “Shy People” (1987), and “Homer and Eddie” (1989).
Konchalovsky also directed plays and operas in a number of European cities. He has directed stage productions including Chekhov’s “The Seagull” at the Odeon Theatre in Paris. He has also directed several operas including Tolstoï’s “War and Peace” at the Metropolitan Opera in New York and the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg, Verdi’s “Un ballo in maschera” at the Teatro Reggio in Turin, and Alexander Pouchkine’s “Queen of Spades” and “Eugene Onegin” both at La Scala in Milano.
His Russian-French co-production “House of Fools” (2001) - a story set in an asylum that stands on the border between Russia and Chechnya during the war in Chechnya - won the Silver Lion at the 2002 Venice Film Festival and was warmly received in Europe. In 2007, he wrote and directed “Gloss”, his sixteenth feature film.
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