Yehor Boichenko is back with another dreamy, conceptual film that is sure to take the spotlight at the 2025 ATVA’s.
Fame is a little different from his 2024 ATVA entry, Daydreaming. Whilst the earlier film focused more on visuals and less on a linear plot, Fame plunges the audience into a political and heartfelt narrative delivered through lots of emotional dialogue.
In the film, a seasoned showgirl meets a wannabe star, promising her a show, career and life in the world of celebrity success. Their friendship hits the rocks early on, however, as the brutality of the industry chips away at their bond. Vying for fame, the two women are pit against each other, creating cracks in their relationship that causes it to crumble into animosity.
The battle to the top of the fame ladder was an issue Yehor had an interest in both as a person and as a filmmaker.
“I just started thinking about the industry… I study Film and Media, so I know how problematic it is. Yet, I still want to be in that career; why do I still want to be there?” Yehor said.
“It’s a question I struggle to answer. A lot of it I think is to do with and answered by fame and Fame itself.”
When Yehor started conceptualising the film in December, Fame had a very different and far gorier ending. When thinking about problems faced by women in the industry, he realised he wanted Fame to take an alternative approach that showed there is a happy ending out there.
To create this ending, he consulted his two stars: Shani Lila, who plays Jo, and Juliet Geers, who plays the young star Eva.
“The original ending just made me think… ‘Why are we making two women compete again?’”
“Often female characters are tortured and sad. They go through a lot and die at the end. I thought ‘No, I don’t want that for these characters’. Their suffering isn’t needed to get the point of Fame across.”
“The film still shows some conflict; there’s a fun cat fight scene but the scene isn’t just for drama’s sake. The two characters realise some important things in that moment.
“I’m really proud of what the film has turned into… it focuses a lot on friendship.”
Yehor told Brig about the fun of filmmaking. The creative process with all it’s ups, downs and last-minute changes really emulated the plot of Fame and helped Yehor formulate the film.
Yehor needed his cast and crew the same way Jo and Eva needed each other to take the next step in their careers. Despite its dreamlike production and editing, realism was rooted in Fame’s story.
“Sometimes, when you argue with you friends, you can both agree to take a little break and talk about it later. In real life, you don’t jump into ‘I’m gonna kill you now!’”
“Fame is about a real problem in the industry, so I wanted the film to show a real relationship, too.”
To cast a little movie magic on the story, Yehor added some of his signature post-production effects.
In each shot, there is a blue hue and an intense grain that give an old Hollywood effect that adds to the glamour of the celebrity plot.
Using a digital camera to create the old-fashioned effect was something Yehor found difficult. A lot of effort was poured into making his vision a reality, Yehor said, but he thinks it was worth it.
“One of the scenes specifically I’m really proud of is the panic attack scene. I try to show anxiety in my films so much.
“This time, finally, when editing the film, I realised I’d shown anxiety the way I hoped to.
“Adding colour and editing… that’s the hardest part of filmmaking for me. It’s a lot of work put into just a few seconds before the camera cuts to a new angle and you need to edit differently.
“But, I love directing and making my ideas into something real and editing helps that happen.”
Making things happen is the epicentre of filmmaking but it’s also the core story of Fame. Yehor’s film is an ode to women in the industry and the suffering they go through to succeed, but it’s also clearly an exclamation for his passion for filmmaking.
The effort and the skill used in making Fame mirrors the trials and tribulations of the two protagonists. The film has layers upon layers and will offer the ATVA audience so much enjoyment on a technical and personal level.
Fame is not to be missed at this years ATVAs.
Featured image credit: Yehor Boichenko.
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