Russian Director Pavel Talankin’s Missing Oscar Statuette Found
washingtonAccording to Variety, a Lufthansa Airlines spokesman said that the Oscar statuette from Russian director Pavel Talankin’s documentary ‘Mr Nobody Against Putin’ was found after it disappeared on the plane going from JFK airport in New York to Frankfurt, Germany. According to media reports, Oscar went missing on Wednesday after Talankin, who co-directed the documentary with David Borenstein and is also the film’s protagonist, was prevented from boarding a flight to Frankfurt, Germany, by a security guard at New York’s John F Kennedy airport. The agent claimed that the figurine could be used as a weapon and should be left in the warehouse. Since Talankin did not have a bag, Oscar was put in a cardboard box. But when he arrived in Germany, Oscar was gone.
“The Oscar statue has now been located in Frankfurt and is safely in our custody,” Lufthansa told Variety, adding that the airline was in direct contact with Talanki to reunite him with his Oscar “as quickly as possible,” according to Variety. According to Variety, Lufthansa said, “We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience caused and apologized to the owner. It is of great importance to us that our guests’ belongings are transported carefully and safely. An internal review of the situation is ongoing.” On Thursday, producer Borenstein posted about the incident on Instagram. “Yesterday [Talankin] He arrived at JFK carrying Oscar on his back, ready to fly to Europe. at the airport [Transportation Security Administration] The agent stopped him and said Oscar could be used as a weapon. Borenstein explained that Robin Hessman, one of the film’s executive producers, “tried to reason with the agent over the phone, but to no avail.”
He added: “Pavel didn’t have a bag to check him in, so the TSA put Oscar in a box and sent him to the bottom of the plane. He never reached Frankfurt.” I looked and couldn’t find any other cases where someone was forced to control Oscar. Would Pavel be treated the same way if he were a famous actor? Or someone who speaks fluent English?”
Earlier this year, ‘Nobody Against Mr. Putin’ triumphed at the BAFTAs and Oscars. The documentary revolved around a Russian teacher who secretly documented the transformation of his small-town school into a combat recruitment center during the Ukrainian occupation, revealing the ethical dilemmas educators face amid propaganda and militarization. Pavel Talankin, the leading actor of the film who recorded the images during the war, also attended the award ceremony. When accepting the award, director David Borenstein praised Pavel for his courage in telling his story during one of the most difficult periods of his life.
