I don't know why, but Putin has made a ritual out of humiliating Medvedev. Sometimes I even feel sorry for the prime minister.

People aren't really afraid of my views. They are just afraid of the word 'nationalism.'

In Russia an authoritarian leader is running the country. You can't fight Putin with elections because he controls them. That's why demonstrations are the most effective approach. Unfortunately Russia has sunk to this primitive level.

Maybe Putin wanted to fire Medvedev , but how is he supposed to do that after my film?

Putin has reversed all the liberalizing reforms carried out by his predecessor.

Everyone needs to understand that my work addresses existing problems, and one of the crucial problems in Russia today is corruption.

Putin needs to terrorize his own elite. He is more afraid of those in his own surroundings than any protests; there are people there who are at least as critical as I am because they see up close that the system doesn't work. He wants to silence them.