The project "The old city in the new world" began upon the photo project "Windows of Irkutsk. Doors of Venice" which took place in 2016 and it was aimed at drawing the attention of the local community to a problem of historical and cultural heritage preservation. For us, founders and organizers, it was very important that participants of the project and its viewers could appreciate the monuments of wooden architecture that still constitute environmental development and represent the historical image of Irkutsk and attracts the attention of visitors. Guided by a desire to prove that old wooden Irkutsk is not less valuable and interesting than lots of European cities and towns and that maintaining this historical authenticity is a common cause, we have announced a photo competition "Windows of Irkutsk. Doors of Venice". The idea of uniting such different cities in one project belongs to the Moscow pictorialist Valery Sirovsky, the fan of traveling who once pointed what a different attitude to antiques in Europe, in particular, Venice, and in Siberia, his not less favorite Irkutsk. While in Venice the century doors are kept without replacing them with plastic, without burning or throwing out, as the property of the nation, in Irkutsk, and over Russia in general, a trend, as the heritage of the Soviet period, is inverse – " we will build the new world which will be ours".

In 2016, more than 1600 photos of Irkutsk windows and Venetian doors from natives of Irkutsk and residents of Italy were received over the competition. Based on the selected photos, historical facts and comments of experts we prepared a street photo exhibition which brought a problem of wooden heritage preservation out of the closed-door conversation to an open-public discussion. Moreover, when the project began its travel across Italy, we saw that it solved one more social problem – the cultural support of our compatriots. "When we got on the exhibition, we understood that we were at home; we realized that we are Russians after all", lots of emigrants said. The project also brings up a current issue, for Europe as well, on drawing the youth's attention to cultural heritage preservation. It was amazing as far as the exhibition appeared to be interesting to Italians – some of them discovered the unique old lacy city for the first time, some people said that they had always dreamed about traveling to far Siberia.

In 2019 the project expands the realization, reaches new level under the name "The OLD CITY IN the NEW WORLD" and, as its part, there will take place the International Film Festival of the same name and the Forum devoted to a perspective of wooden architecture preservation of Russian cities. We want to expand formats of work with the public, both in Irkutsk and in other cities of Russia and Italy. Also, we suggest you show how someone carried away by their city, village, any corner and a small street, sees them in the modern world where hidden among skyscrapers and standard housing, the corners of last centuries as the historical signs tell us that they were created by our ancestors for us; how the modern person interacts with the modern city and how they influence on each other.

We want that as much as possible people pay attention to the value of places where they live, where their children grow up, that they understand that this issue knows no limit, and it is important to keep heritage in every spot on the globe.

After the successful exhibition "Windows of Irkutsk. Doors of Venice" we created a project under the name "The Old City in the New World" which was supported by the Fund of presidential grants, and in which we want to involve a wide public from all over the world, and, above all, such people who appreciate the cultural heritage we have got. Within the project the following events take place in 2019:

- International Film Festival "The Old City in the New World" (final stage in Irkutsk, Russia)
- International photo exhibition "Windows of Irkutsk. Doors of Venice" (Italy)
- Forum "The old city in the new world" (Irkutsk, Russia)

The demonstration of the film festival winners' works will be built in the final stage of the project "Windows of Irkutsk. Doors of Venice" that will take place in Venice and Verona in 2019. At the international forum "The Old City in the New World" the best practices on the involvement of locals in historical and cultural heritage preservation all over the world will be presented. As a result of the project implementation, the unique international community of experts from old cities, representing their view of their old city and forming a trend on historical and cultural heritage preservation, will be formed.

The "Old City in the New World" film festival is intended to expand borders and ways of communication with community on preservation of historical and cultural heritage. We want to invite residents of Russia and Italy – amateurs and professionals as well – to represent their old cities, as they are seen by each author of the video, and to send works to the competition "The Old City in the New World".

The Film festival purpose is the fixation of community on an issue of cultural heritage preservation of the cities with centuries-old history, architectural heritage preservation, drawing special attention to monuments of wooden architecture, research of a cultural phenomenon "the old city" and human interactions with it.

Aims the Festival:
- the organization of an open creative competition for amateurs and professionals of cinematography;
- encouragement of movie creation on the subjects devoted to cultural and historical heritage with a possibility of the international experience exchange, adjustment of new cultural relations, maintenance of intellectual level and creative potential of the nation;
- attraction to the cooperation of Russian and Italian film studios and broadcasting companies, an organization of experience exchange, activation of a creative process and increase in professional level;
- increase in interest in local filming;
- strengthening of traditions of the international dialogue between Russian and Italian cinematographers for solving current problems with the development of the cities with historical heritage, culture and innovations;
- an acquaintance of the audience with the modern culture of the historic towns of Russia and Italy.

Demonstration of the film festival winners' works will be built in the final stages of the project "Windows of Irkutsk. Doors of Venice" which will take place in Venice and Verona in 2019.

The competition is held on the following nominations:
- "Best documentary film"
- "Best live-action film"
- "Best Video art"

The competition is held from January 20, 2019, to March 22, 2019.

The works sent to the Film festival have to be created not earlier than 2015 and to correspond to the stated idea, including: a discernible subject of cultural/architectural heritage of the cities; interaction of an "old" and "new" city; interaction of a person and city. The participants of the competition can be legal entities, individuals and groups of people who own the provided movies and videos and are over 18 years.

The "Old City in the New World" film festival is held in Russia and Italy. Works for participation in the competition are accepted from the participants living in the cities which are older than 300 years. Also, the competitive works filmed in the territory of such cities are allowed to participate if the scenes made in these cities take more than 2/3 of the general timing of competitive work.

Competition 18+

Works of winners will be honored with prize money, the best works will be shown on television, at movie theaters and within the final stages of the photo exhibition "Windows of Irkutsk. Doors of Venice" which will take place in Venice, Verona, Moscow, and Irkutsk.

The famous public figures and figures of cinematography of Italy and Russia joined the judges of the film festival.

The project partners: Regional state autonomous cultural institution "Irkutsk Regional Film Fund" with the support of Irkutsk Region Government and Irkutsk Regional Department of the "Union of Cinematographers of Russia".

Authors of the idea, founders of film festival are Marina Kondrashova (marina_levada@mail.ru), Maxim Savchenko (max@sibericafilm.com)

For the first time the exhibition under the name "Windows of Irkutsk. Doors of Venice" took place in 2016 in Irkutsk in an open-air stand format. About 300 of 1600 photo works which were received for the competition both from Russia and Italy, were presented at exhibition stands.

International project "Windows of Irkutsk. Doors of Venice" — is not just a collection of good photos. It is a great cultural and educational activity designed to draw the attention of citizens to the heritage of the past – as habitual as escaping so far. Besides, several stands of the open-street bench exhibition in Irkutsk are devoted to the historical and cultural threads that connected Russia and Italy in the second half of 19 century – the beginning of the 20th century: how Italian engineers designed and constructed the Circum-Baikal railway, opened the first movie theatres and a photographer's studio in Irkutsk, created the decorative mosaic pictures in public space remained up to now. Irkutsk and Venice, the cities divided by thousands of kilometres of roads and centuries of history, are made kin by those caught moments – the notes remained by miracle over a long time; the messages left by ancestors. These messages embodied in wood, metal, and stone can be read and deciphered not only by us but, also, by future generations.

The idea of the exhibition about the importance of architectural and historical heritage preservation touched hearts not only of Irkutsk natives and the Russian compatriots in Italy but also the Italian public, creative and cultural associations. Also, great interest in the project is taken by authorities and media.

In the fall, 2017, the project was invited to take part in the Wood Festival in Cantu (Italy, Lake Como), and 62 photo works that were selected by organizers of the festival were presented within the project presentation in a museum format.

Main stages of the project implementation:
July, 2016 up to now – an open-air stand exhibition in Irkutsk
September,23 — October,8, 2017 - the Wood Festival (Cantu, Lake Como, Italy)
January,12 — January, 23, 2018 – the Russian center of science and culture (Rome, Italy)
February,17 — March, 17, 2018 – Factory of ceramics "Grace" (16th century) (Deruta, Umbria, Italy)
May, 2018 - the project received patronage of Embassy of the Russian Federation in the Republic of Italy
May,11 — May, 27, 2018 – Kamposano, Naples, Italy
October, 2018 - the project was supported by the Fund of presidential grants of the Russian Federation
December,7, 2018 — January,15, 2019 - Farneze's Palace (15th century) (Orton, Abruzzo, Italy)

"The project "Window of Irkutsk. Doors of Venice" is unique travel to the world of history, architectural and wooden creativity, the world of love to the native land. It is a view of hundreds of people on their home-town, its beauty, its details, giving the space that uniqueness that makes tourists arrive, but, sometimes, not noticed by locals…", the head of "Heritage of the Irkutsk Patrons Fund" Marina Kondrashova says.

The subject of heritage preservation is important in every spot on the globe, for any country, and for any city. Within the project we want to unite the initiatives of communities in different corners of the globe on preservation of historical monuments, culture and architecture.

We are sure that only together exchanging experience and joining efforts we will maintain the unique heritage of the world culture for future generations!

Event information will be here soon.