Domozhirova compares Kurgan residents and Muscovites

An actress from Kurgan (Kurgan Oblast, Russia), Marina Domozhirova, will soon appear in the new comedy series «Planetyane» on the TNT TV channel (telekanal TNT, TNT). She spoke about her character, hobbies, her attitude toward fame and publicity, and about her native Kurgan.

— In one interview it was mentioned that you are a rather passionate and experienced mushroom forager. Mushroom season is in full swing — have you already gone out foraging?

— Foraging for mushrooms is my passion — precisely gathering, not eating. I sometimes even dream I’m picking mushrooms and get enormous pleasure from it. But in the past three years I definitely haven’t managed to go. Honestly, I don’t know mushroom spots in Moscow and the Moscow Region. My sister recently sent photos of milk caps and porcini from Kurgan, and I was so jealous!

— You are from Kurgan. What are Kurgan residents like? How do they differ from Muscovites?

— Kurgan residents are great! In my view, the mentality is similar to that in Moscow, although I can count the native Muscovites I know on the fingers of one hand. Kurgan residents are kind, open, talented, fast — just like Muscovites.

I have a saying: «It’s not where — it’s who!» For me, moving through space is natural; I experience it like teleportation, and I don’t care where the meeting is — what matters is with whom! So Kurgan for me is people — my family and friends.

— Do you have any special places or memories connected with Kurgan?

— It’s my hometown; there, every bush is tied to important childhood and teenage memories. By the fountain next to the philharmonic, I set up meetings and dates. We once decorated the Embankment of Love ourselves with the youth organization «21st Century» (molodezhnaya organizatsiya «21 vek»), and now it’s one of the most beautiful places in the city. I ran along garage roofs with friends when I was just a little girl. And in an aluminum barrel in the garden I would spread a blanket, bring treats — that was my little house.

— Viewers know you from many roles. How has your attitude toward fame and publicity changed over time? What do you see as the upsides and downsides of being well known?

— In my student years there was some wild charge of energy, and I wanted to be everywhere at once, to have everyone know me and invite me, I wanted to be noticeable, famous, to be recognized and asked for autographs. Now I treat notoriety calmly; it’s a natural part of my life. I love my viewers — they are kind, supportive, generous with compliments. By the way, I try never to refuse a joint photo when we meet. In this regard, I consider Andrei Fedortsov, Nikita Panfilov, and Timur Batrutdinov my mentors — they are a true example of how to treat your audience, because it’s precisely for them that we make our films! As for the downsides: sometimes there are moments when I don’t want to see anyone; at such times I try to hide at home. And of course, if someone behaves rudely (the kind of thing like “Hey, you, come here, let’s take a photo”), I would set my boundaries — but I haven’t encountered that so far; my viewers are polite!

Marina Domozhirova’s filmography includes more than 80 projects.

— Do you correspond with fans often? What do they ask you about most?

— I don’t often reply to letters personally, but I do read them and send a little beam of kindness to whoever wrote. On social networks it’s hard to tell where there’s a real person and where there’s a fake account, but if someone writes me something good, know that I send warmth back — and sometimes I even reply personally. People write a lot. It’s very valuable for me to read that my work helped someone get through a crisis in their life or helped them choose a profession. As with the series «Skoraya pomoshch» (“Ambulance”), I still receive letters from young people who went to study medicine, and that is incredibly pleasing.

Most often they ask whether I will be in the new season of «Ambulance», ask me to return to the series, want to know whether Gosha Kutsenko and I are husband and wife, and, often, write that I’m beautiful — which I appreciate.

— What is the most unusual and/or memorable gift you have received from fans?

— A girl sent me my portrait by mail, made out of beads. I was very impressed — how much time and love she put into it! I’m probably most impressed when a person makes something with their own hands!

— What important recent events would you single out?

— My husband and I are building a house by a lake; it’s a big and labor-intensive process. At this stage, we want to dance a dance of joy on the plot, since we’ve finished the first stage and the house frame is fully ready — which means we can move on to the interior work.

My nephew was born, and I became a godmother for the third time. Our whole family gathered for the christening in Kurgan. We got a cat, and now we have a sweet feline pair at home. I adore them.

I worked a great deal: we shot seven screen projects, and two are now in production. I think that for complete satisfaction with the film season I need one more to make an even ten. My husband and I took a long-awaited vacation to Zanzibar — our special place that recharges us — and now I’m full of strength and energy!

— You have a hobby that arose from frequent flights and tours: you started sewing travel pillows. Have you thought about turning your hobby into a business?

— Thank you! I had that hobby, but it didn’t take root; I think I don’t have enough motivation. Any business requires time and involvement in the process, and with my schedule sometimes there isn’t even enough time for myself. But if I were to create a brand, it would be about travel: travel pillows, bright swimsuits, wrinkle-free clothing, tracksuits. Everything for comfortable travel. I would call it, for example, Pole Pole — in Zanzibar that means relaxed, unhurried.

— This year alone you have coming out, or already released, dozens of projects — and that’s just on television. It’s fair to say you could teach time management. Tell us, aren’t you afraid of professional burnout?

— Yes, this year we’re shooting projects for every taste! Professional burnout is an important topic. I’ve had moments when I woke up in some city and only by looking out the window understood who I was playing that day. Or when on set the director says: «Super, you did that brilliantly», and at that moment I didn’t understand at all what I was doing, because I didn’t feel anything — that’s how exhausted I was. So yes, I’m afraid of it and I try to take care of myself, to optimize some processes in life, to delegate what I can.

In general, according to my husband, I’m a great systematizer. There’s a lot of chaos in film production, and I’m constantly looking for life hacks to organize my life.

— Let’s talk about the series «Planetyane». In the series you play Irina. Tell us about your heroine. Do you think Irina will win the audience’s love?

— I hope the audience will love my heroine just as I loved her. It’s hard to call Irina an unequivocally positive character — she’s alive, very emotional, and tangled up in her life. And with the arrival of aliens, the situation gets worse; I even feel sorry for her at certain moments, although from the outside it may look very funny. So as not to spoil anything, I’ll say that Irina is driven by the desire to love and be loved, to feel desired.

The premiere of the series «Planetyane» will take place on 22 September at 20:00.

Earlier, Marina Domozhirova spoke about her childhood in Kurgan.