Julia Sak is a multifaceted artist who impresses with her devotion to art and the depth of her creative approach. Her path in the world of theatre, cinema and poetry is a story of how talent, support from loved ones and tireless work can create a unique creative universe. In this interview, Julia shares her thoughts on the role of art in life, the influence of family on the formation of personality, and how she finds inspiration in each new project. Her story is an example of how a true passion for creativity can be a source of strength and inspiration for many.
Julia, please tell us how you decided to connect your life with creativity?
I never even considered any other option in my life. It was all predestined. I was born with it. God decided everything for me, and I just heard and obeyed His will.
Who or what has played the most important role in shaping you as an artiste?
My talent that I have lived since I was a little girl. My talent and I are best friends! My mum is a very talented person. She is a film director, writer, screenwriter, artist and teacher. My mum gave me a lot from a very young age. For example, my talent as a composer was discovered thanks to her. As a little three-year-old girl, she used to sit me on her lap at the piano and ask me to show her how a teddy bear walks, a bunny jumps or a bird flies. At the age of six, I wrote my first piece – a polyphonic piece called ‘Clocks’. At the age of nine, I became a laureate of the young composers’ competition. At the age of eleven I wrote a 45-minute ballet ‘The Girl with Matches’. And my acting talent was revealed thanks to the fact that my mum played puppets with me. We had a ‘Jolly Family’ of 60 people, and we in the game reincarnated in each of them. I imitated my mum by changing voices and capturing the essence of the images. Also, thanks to my mother, I watched the best films and listened to the best music from childhood. That’s how I developed my artistic taste. A huge influence on me as an actress was Innokenty Smoktunovsky in Hamlet. Being 9 or 10 years old, I was shocked by his game and decided that I wanted to play only like him! Of course, at first my attempts were pathetic. But at the age of 18, I felt that an incredible energy and strength had opened up in me! Then there was constant work, striving for perfection, and an aversion to shoddy, false and half-hearted work. I am not a perfectionist, but I have high demands on myself, on others and on art in general. I cannot tolerate falsity in art or in life. The main thing is to understand yourself and not to change yourself.
Julia, you express yourself in different types of art, from theatre to cinema and poetry. What is your favourite genre of art and why?
I love opera, chamber music and music in general most of all! Initially I even wanted to become an opera singer, but a lot of vocal competitions in my youth and experiences during them made everything possible for me to connect my life with the acting profession. Although acting as an actress has always been my favourite thing in the world! I am first and foremost an actress, and all my talents were revealed through my acting perception and vision of the world. But my love of music also contributed to this. I wanted to stage my plays and read my poems only to music (melodeclamation), which I always choose myself! And music plays a significant role in my films. At first I took music by the most talented composer Oleg Razumovsky or classical musicians for my films, but for our ninth film I wrote the music myself. The soundtrack was almost 40 minutes long. The film’s running time is 1 hour and 37 minutes.
Why did you decide to make the film ‘Ukraine - Temple of My Heart’? How did you choose actors for the film? What difficulties did you encounter during filming?
I wanted to make this film because the pain that filled my whole being after the full-scale invasion had to have a way out. And that outlet could only be in art. In no way do I show evil and cruelty in our film. Art must be above all this imperfection. It’s a psychological drama. I show the state of people on the home front during this difficult time. I decided to immortalise and convey to others the pain that lives in the souls of Ukrainians, the realities without embellishments or exaggerations, without deception. Many viewers after the screening said with tears in their eyes that they experienced the effect of full presence at the screening and this film touched their deepest feelings.
The ending, of course, in our film is good in order to give hope to people’s souls, to predict the victory of good over evil, and to leave a good aftertaste.
We had no difficulties during filming. The actors were easy to pick up, too. We have a small group of professionals, our friends, and first of all we offer roles to them. Although, in parallel, we consider other creators with whom we cross paths on various projects. For the role of my heroine’s husband we immediately decided to take our friend – actor and director – Alexander Melnik. He has played in several of our films. Including Skovoroda in the feature film ‘The world caught me, but did not catch’. For this film I received the Grigory Skovoroda Award. With a girl for the role of my heroine’s niece was more difficult. We could not find a child for a difficult psychological role. In the film the girl’s mother dies in front of her eyes. She has to cry at the real ruins. And so, we were told by one of our actresses that her neighbour has a very talented daughter. We called her, invited her. Indeed! The girl perfectly coped with the role. And it is interesting that the niece of my heroine in the film is called – Pauline and we found the role of Polinka Turcevich. The daughter of my heroine played the niece of Sasha Melnik – Lisa Melnik. She looks like him something – something, and played well. In general, we have in the film plays about 30 people. I would especially like to note the game of Natalia Savina, Victor Krivusha and Nina Volkova. Natalia and Victor played the roles of my heroine’s parents, and Nina played the role of a neighbour.
You are an honoured pop artist of Ukraine. What roles do you consider the most significant in your theatre career and why? How do you see the development of Ukrainian theatre in modern conditions?
The first role I played in the theatre was Anna Akhmatova. This mono-performance immediately won the prize for best mono-performance and best female role at the festival. It was with this performance that I first appeared on the theatre stage and went on tour for the first time. The event was held within the framework of the 120th anniversary of Akhmatova in the house where the poetess’s aunt lived, in Slobodka-Shelekhovskaya in Khmelnitchina. Then my performance was seen by more than a thousand spectators. I performed on the street, at the monument to Akhmatova. After the performance, the audience queued for autographs. An elderly woman kissed my hand, saying that she had never seen such a performance before. Everyone noted my great resemblance to the poetess. Our first feature film is also dedicated to Akhmatova. Although I love the role of Vera Kholodnaya more, about whom I also have a play and a feature film. By the way, many people talk about our resemblance to Kholodnaya. I know it myself. Vera Kholodnaya is my favourite actress.
It is better to ask directors how Ukrainian theatre can develop. At the beginning of my career, I deliberately chose the solo path. I have mono-performances, author’s films, and a TV programme on the channel I created, Zirka Fenix TB. In addition, I am creating a poetry theatre. I have been asked many times: ‘How did you decide to go solo when theatres are barely surviving? Isn’t it scary?’. No, I’m not afraid! I believe in God and in my talent. I believe that to a true talent, God will open new horizons and send the right people.
You talked about your mother's influence on your formation. What do you think is the role of parents in shaping talent and character?
The role of parents is extremely important in the development of a child. Parental support, transfer of personal experience and knowledge in any field is a foundation for the whole life. For example, my mum’s support and her presence in my life is a kind of guardian angel for me. At the same time, the lack of parental support can even have fatal consequences, as it happened to the genius Nika Turbina.
In general, the main criterion is God’s gift given to a person at birth. If the higher powers have endowed a person with talent, he will strive for it, and he will do everything related to it better, faster and easier. For example, the parents of the brilliant Ukrainian artist Kateryna Belokur, whose work I am really excited about, did not support her passion for drawing at all, but she still mastered this skill on her own and revealed a unique style in her paintings.
You are very successful in combining different aspects of theatre and cinema. Is there a particular project in which you have most revealed yourself as an actress, director and author at the same time? Were there any difficulties?
In all of our films I am simultaneously an actress, director, co-writer (with my mother), cameraman, editor and sound engineer. In each film and in each of these roles I try to reach my full potential. Of course, historical films are the hardest to make, as you have to find the right locations and costumes. I played several roles in the feature film about Gogol, The Seer, and that’s not the only project of its kind.
In the film about Skovoroda, I played all the women who were in his life: his mother, his lover, Empress Elizabeth and the wisdom Sophia.
So wanted Peter Prystupov (composer, singer and actor), who saw me and my mother as directors of this film. He has been studying the phenomenon of Skovoroda for more than 40 years. Peter Prystupov wrote the music to the cycle of songs on Skovoroda’s words (in adapted Ukrainian translation) ‘The Garden of Divine Songs’ and performed them himself.
In general, it is quite difficult to simultaneously build a frame, give tasks to the actors and then play. However, the love for your work gives you strength. Besides, there have been and are many concerts and performances in my life, where I have up to ten appearances: dances, poems, monologues – and all these are completely different characters, from humorous to deeply dramatic.
Your mono-performances and author's films often have a deep personal subtext. How do you define the line between personal experience and creative reinterpretation? Do you find it easy to convey personal emotions and experiences through art?
Art for me is my life, my oxygen! Art is often my salvation from the worst grief. If I can’t create, I can’t live! My favourite singer, the great baritone Ettore Bastianini, used to say the same thing. He loved singing so much that even after he was diagnosed with throat cancer, he continued to perform. It’s a real obsession! And I, thank God, am familiar with that kind of obsession! The line between me – a human being and me – a creator does not exist! Since childhood I was ‘out of this world’, I lived only in creativity and got lost in real life. Now I have learnt to ‘ground myself’ a little, but it is still difficult for me. My perception of the world all my life happens through the prism of creativity, emotions, passions, images and associations, that’s why all these feelings, facets and thoughts are intertwined in my works. I have a philosophical mindset and an interest in psychology since childhood. This is my reinterpretation of what I see and experience. When I create something, to this ‘bouquet’ of feelings I add only professionalism as a foundation. A kind of systematisation takes place, and the rest is a world of feelings and passions.
How easy is it for me to convey personal emotions and feelings through art? Easier than living! It is a kind of ecstasy! World famous artist Andrey Kulagin in an interview for my channel ‘Zirka Fenix TB’ said that only in three cases a person can experience the highest pleasure: in prayer, in love and in the creative process! I completely agree with him!
Your career has been recognised with numerous awards. How do you feel about awards and recognition in the arts?
Awards in my life don’t change me. Neither awards, nor being in demand, nor great reviews cause me ‘star sickness’. I don’t feel the added pressure of receiving awards either. With or without awards, I try to create a truly talented product that will outlive me and be accepted in different countries. All I can say is that awards give me positive emotions, make up a little for the energy I’ve spent and give me faith in a good future.
You mentioned that you cannot tolerate falsity in art. How do you define ‘authenticity’ in your work, do you have any special criteria by which you evaluate your work or the work of other artists?
I myself am a very sincere person, it is difficult for me to lie and twist my soul, and in art such things are completely unacceptable to me. The worst thing is to lie to yourself. Every person knows what is in his soul and in his thoughts, and if he acts contrary to himself, he broadcasts lies and insincerity. I myself am attuned to sincerity and feel it in others. As they say, ‘one sees his own from afar’. I intuitively read any insincerity and falsity through a feeling of inner discomfort or sharp protest. Often there is not falsity, but overcomplication, when it is not the soul that creates, but the intellect. Such ‘over-complication’ is found in the great and the brilliant. In such cases there is a rupture of connection with the higher forces because of an inner conflict. The reasons may be different. And when not very talented people start ‘overmodelling’, they try to take originality, to create something that nobody else has done, but perfection is in simplicity and naturalness! One should be able to listen to one’s soul, to perceive information from higher forces and to know oneself well. For example, when I create, I am guided only by my inner state of comfort or discomfort. If I become uncomfortable and the process ceases to fascinate me, it means that I have gone the wrong way. Then I go back to the starting point.
We have enjoyed watching several episodes of your programme ‘God's Gift ’. It has an interesting concept. What was the main idea of this project and how do you develop it through each issue? How do you find heroes for each issue?
I was first invited to be a TV presenter on a social channel, but they didn’t give me the opportunity to talk enough about my guests and reveal their creative potential, which I didn’t like. However, the job of a presenter, on the contrary, I really enjoyed. Therefore, having ‘sent a request to the Universe’, I realised that I could create my own channel where I would reveal the talents of my guests in various fields. I called the programme ‘God’s Gift’ because I am firmly convinced that all our talents are given to us from God. And everyone has talents in one direction or another. Someone has the talent to be just a mum, and this is also a great art!
At first, when the channel did not yet have an audience and was just gaining momentum, I invited talented acquaintances and friends to my programmes. But the channel quickly attracted an audience, and new people started approaching me. Now some people ask for interviews themselves, and I find others. Most often I try to find talented people who are close to me in spirit. What is important to me in programmes is the atmosphere of comfort and kindness. It is usually easy to find guests. The difficulties are more to do with the fact that I want to talk to a lot of people, and I have a very busy schedule of performances and filming.
What kind of feedback do you get from viewers of your programme? Are there stories or comments that have particularly impressed you and perhaps changed your vision of the project?
There was no feedback that would have changed my vision of the project. Before launching any project, I carefully consider its format, starting from the main idea (actors call it ‘the grain of the image’), so it’s not easy to find something even more important in the main idea. ‘You don’t look for good from good.’ The feedback from guests and viewers is most often wonderful. For example, I was very pleased to hear from the People’s Artist Larisa Kadochnikova that she is a picky person, but in our interview she had nothing to pick on. I was also pleased when People’s Artist Svetlana Belonozhko reposted our programme on her page and thanked me for my work. Many guests said that I was a real professional and created a great programme with them. Some called me a perfect presenter. Philosopher and poet Alexander Volny said that I had created a unique, harmonious interview with him from beginning to end, and noted that I had directed it to the smallest detail. And he wasn’t the only one who talked about me directing my interviews. Viewers and guests are also attracted by the homely atmosphere I create in my interactions. Many of my guests have said that their fear of being recorded completely disappears from the first few minutes of our interaction. Some have opened up so much during the recording that they could cry when talking about something intimate. Of course, there were times when some guests (not many of them) didn’t even say ‘thank you’ after the programme. A couple of times and viewers wrote me very unpleasant things, up to and including the fact that such interviews are not needed now and that other trends are now different.
Yes, I don’t quite fit in with modern trends, which often show technological progress rather than people’s talents. But God created me this way – ‘unmodern’ – and I will be true to myself until my last breath. People often talk about me as a person from the past or the century before last, calling me ‘the rebirth of Vera Kholodnaya’. Yes, I am from those times, where spirituality, true talent and beauty of creations were valued! But for some reason God sent me into this world at this particular time… I believe that nothing is random. I believe in this and I believe in Divine miracles, so I do not turn from my path, I do not retreat and I go with great faith in God’s fulfilment!
