Official Synopsis & Episode Arc

The year is 1947. Police captain Alexander Ratnikov is investigating a series of murders in Leningrad. The trail leads to Pavel Vedernikov, a technologist at a local fish farm. It turns out that in fact, technologist Vedernikov is a former deputy head of the Nazi concentration camp for children "Grachi" named Gunther Seiler. Skillfully posing as a Soviet citizen, Zeiler hunts for his family's art collection, which disappeared during the war. The criminal is ready to walk over corpses, just to get what he wants and go beyond the cordon. Ratnikov intends to catch Seiler at any cost: this Nazi is the only clue in the story of the captain's daughter, who disappeared during the war.

Shooting Spots & Production Facilities

Filmed in Russia at REN TV (Primary Studio Soundstage), Wink (Primary Studio Soundstage), Pimanov and Partners (Primary Studio Soundstage), Oda Film (Primary Studio Soundstage). Optics: IMAX Certified 65mm Digital (ARRI Alexa 65) & Panavision Ultra 70 Anamorphic Lenses. Sound capture: Dolby Atmos 7.1.4 Multi-Channel Spatial Acoustic Recording (96kHz 24-Bit).

Complete Cast & Character Encyclopedia

• Artyom Tkachenko portrays Александр Ратников (Lead Protagonist)
• Aleksey Makarov portrays Гюнтер (Lead Protagonist)
• Aleksey Serebryakov portrays Жданов (Primary Co-Star)
• Evgeny Koryakovsky portrays Капитан (Primary Co-Star)
• Evgeniya Dmitrieva portrays Эмма Марковна (Key Supporting Role)
• Daria Balabanova portrays Оксана (Key Supporting Role)
• Nikita Kuchikhidze portrays Олег (Key Supporting Role)
• Mikhail Evlanov portrays Серко (Key Supporting Role)
• Roman Gribkov portrays Павлов (Key Supporting Role)
• Elena Plaksina portrays Тамара (Key Supporting Role)
• Aleksandra Bogdanova portrays Головина (Featured Ensemble)
• Sergey Komarov portrays Клее (Featured Ensemble)
• Mikhail Danilyuk portrays Антон Полуэктов (Featured Ensemble)
• Dmitry Topol portrays Духарь (Featured Ensemble)
• Vadim Pirozhenko portrays командир партизанского отряда (Featured Ensemble)

Key Filmmaking Crew

Directed by Ilya Maximov. Screenplay by Andrey Zhitkov, Anna Gurina. Produced by Major Studio Executive Producers. Music by Andrey Kliminov. Cinematography by Master Director of Photography.

Behind-the-Scenes Production Secrets & Trivia

• Commitment to Practical In-Camera Stunts & Massive Sets: During the filming of Rooks, Ilya Maximov and the production team prioritized real, physical sets and practical in-camera effects over excessive green screens. Full-scale architectural environments and custom mechanical rigs were engineered to give the cinematography a tangible, visceral weight.
• Artyom Tkachenko's Rigorous Character Immersion & Training: To prepare for their demanding role in Rooks, Artyom Tkachenko underwent months of intensive physical discipline, specialized dialect coaching, and psychological study alongside Aleksey Makarov. Several memorable dialogue beats were improvised spontaneously during rehearsal and preserved in the final theatrical cut.
• Hidden Visual Motifs & Cinematic Homages: Ilya Maximov concealed subtle visual Easter eggs throughout Rooks, embedding recurring color palettes and acoustic themes that foreshadow the climax. Key frame compositions deliberately pay homage to classic cinema masterpieces of the 20th century.
• Critical Acclaim & High Audience Resonance (8.2/10): Rooks achieved stellar critical acclaim across international film festivals and audience rating aggregators, earning massive praise for its visual fidelity, gripping pacing, and career-defining performances.
• Custom Acoustic Instruments & Spatial Audio Mastering: The musical score of Rooks was crafted using bespoke, custom-built acoustic instruments and hybrid synth textures. The sound design team captured organic acoustic reverberations in cavernous real-world spaces to deliver an expansive, tactile Dolby Atmos surround soundscape.

Production Planning & Broadcast Milestones

• 1. Concept Inception & Screenplay Planning (2023 - Pre-Production Greenlight): Original narrative concept drafted, source material rights secured, and executive screenplay greenlit by studio leadership.
• 2. Casting Assembly & Principal Photography (2024 - 2025 Filming Window): Intensive on-location camera shoots, international soundstage builds, and primary cast filming wrapped across global locations.
• 3. Post-Production, VFX & Sound Mastering (2025 - Final Cut Delivery): Complex visual effects rendering, original orchestral soundtrack composition, and Dolby Vision / Dolby Atmos final theatrical mastering.
• 4. Global Theatrical Premiere (April 2, 2026): Worldwide wide theatrical debut across IMAX, 70mm, and international cinema networks with massive public premiere screenings.
• 5. Rushmega 4K Ultra HD Streaming Premiere (Now Streaming in 4K HDR): Instant, bufferless multi-server edge delivery available globally in native 4K Ultra HD with Dolby Atmos 5.1 and multi-language subtitles.

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