Children are fine: the rules of life of Russian teenagers
On teenagers for a long time did not pay attention. But now youth has come into vogue: this is the real topic of the year, the numbers of business and glossy magazines are devoted to it, sociologists are trying to understand where this generation has a “button”, and politicians to pull young people to their side. Teens become the heroes of fashionable filming, documentaries and advertising campaigns, and brands spend huge amounts of money on researching their preferences. It comes to the point of absurdity - to take at least the news that Gucci has a “secret council of the millennials,” giving valuable instructions to designers and marketers.
About Millennials themselves, that is, those who grew up in the 2000s, it is customary to say that they are not very interested in relationships, but they are obsessed with politics, spend all their free time at concerts and save for years on fashionable sneakers. There are many myths around adolescents in Russia, but for sure we know one thing: the generation of zero is really equally free from the Soviet past and from the era of the 90s. What are the rules of modern young people? We decided to talk to them and find out what they think about politics, their rights, fashion, parents and peers.
The last two years I have been studying at the Lyceum at the Higher School of Economics in the design department. At first it seemed that it was easy here, but by the end of the quarter it turned out that everything was very serious.
I changed three schools. I can definitely say that the place where I study now is the best option. In previous schools it was worse. Teachers were older, the difference between generations is greater. Now everything is much friendlier and more pleasant.
I have a good relationship with my parents. My mother knows all my friends, but she never told me who to be friends with, and who to not. She just supports me.
Mom is also a designer by training. She can advise or advise me in my work. I love to draw since childhood, but probably not good enough to become an artist.
I love to go to visit and I love when guests come to me - for me this is a separate part of the friendship. It is interesting to me to see what the layout of the people in the apartment, what the interior. Do not evaluate, namely, to consider.
Our "secret place" is the area where we study. Last year it was China Town, and in this we moved to Tsvetnoy Boulevard. Now everyone began to go home early, and last year it was great to sit on the grass near the lyceum.
On the Internet, I met people under the age of thirteen. Now almost all my friends are from lyceum. But in general, I have a lot of friends from completely different parties. The circle of close friends is changing all the time - one can say that I “wander” around companies. To become my friend, a person must first have understanding, kindness and a sense of humor. Now my company consists of very different people and I communicate with everyone a little bit. If I could, I would definitely make a movie about them.
I started instagram about three years ago. I have been on a diet for a long time and at some point I decided to create a second account where there would be no parents and no adults at all. I wrote about how I try to love and accept myself. I immediately got a lot of subscribers - it seems that I just hit the right time.
If people write me something bad, I just block them. Sometimes they come from other accounts and call their friends: "Hey, let's go write something to her." Banning is normal. Account in a social network - especially your space. Nika Vodwood made a good comparison - with the apartment where you call guests. If a bad person comes, you can point him at the door. People hide behind "criticism", but body criticism is not a criticism at all. It should not be.
I was teased at school when I was quite small. Now that my weight is much greater, this is not happening.
I learned about feminism from my girlfriend, with whom I had been close friends for two or three years ago. At the same time, I began to read about bodypositive. At first I watched special publics, but did not sign, I thought: "Oh God, how many photos of naked bodies. I am too small for this, I do not need to look at it." I was even banned in one public, because in a post about abortions I wrote some nonsense like: "I would never have an abortion." And then she was even indignant - why they banned me! Later, I read the rules and realized that I had violated them: first, they did not ask me, and second, it was always better to study the subject more deeply.
I spend a lot of time on the Internet - on social networks like instagram and VKontakte. Right very much. Sometimes useless. But recently I looked at which public I go to most often. It's funny, but it's "Internet." There are only good news and memes - without sarcasm and black humor. People in the comments write friendly things to each other. Watching the public Nicky Vodvud. I lead my own.
My hobby is drawing and playing ukuleles. But there is probably no such thing for which I would specifically set aside time.
The saddest moment in my life is when I had to bury a cat.
Ivanovo is not a very big city, so it is very easy to move there from one place to another and the environment is cleaner. But I like it better in Moscow, then you can even walk around the new park every day and in general have something to do.
I go to Ivanovo Christian Center - this is a Protestant church. We got into the church with my family, even when we lived in Moscow. This is useful not only for spiritual growth, but also for communication: you can go there for advice or just to relax. I always go to the service on Sundays, there is music, praise, we pray. Sometimes there are youth services on Fridays or Saturdays.
If I finish school normally, I will go to university, as all people usually do. I will be upset if I have to stay in Ivanovo. This is a good city, everything is in it, but I was not born there, I love big cities. I liked it in Egypt, I don’t like it at all when it is winter and slush.
I love my older sister, she is very beautiful and dresses well. When we lived in Moscow, we often quarreled, but now we are very close.
I communicate more with friends from church, and with classmates mostly in the spirit of "let them write off." I sit in social networks a lot, it could be smaller. Most often I go to the public with memes.
We have a good school. But sometimes there are eight lessons, so I literally learn from morning till night.
I think that you can simultaneously believe in science and in God.
It seems to me that the most important areas are artificial intelligence and nanotechnology. Artificial intelligence can do what man cannot. Neural networks are already working in a regular browser - they adapt ads to what you are looking for in a search. They are also able to drive vehicles and at some point will be able to replace a person in this area.
I love science fiction films because they show how our future can be and how we can change it. Of the TV shows, I recently liked The Corporation the most.
In the future, some activities will simply become extinct, disappear, because robots will do this work for us. Cleaners and accountants will most likely die out first. Similarly, there will be programmers, engineers, mathematicians.
I want to become an economist or to connect my life with politics. Recently, I began to watch more TV, I do not know why, and I like to analyze what is happening in the country and what can be changed. I like Switzerland because there is direct democracy and people can choose. Our president was at first more or less normal, but now he was fed up with it.
If I had a free day that I could spend as I please, I would go to where it is warmer. At sea, for example, swim. In order not to have any worries and not to think that tomorrow there will be some kind of tension going to school. The whole family would take with him.
I think my parents were different at my age. More active, less sick. Dad did better than me, and so did mom. We walked, probably more often.
I want to become a very rich person and do not deny anything. Someone from my friends wants to become a veterinarian, someone an economist, someone a doctor, someone a president - everyone dreams about different things.
I do not consider myself an absolutely happy person, but I think that I am now where I am needed, everything is going as it should be. I have a house, mom, dad, cat, everything is there. I feel good
I study in a private school, she seems to be in the top 200 of Moscow, but I don’t really believe it. Recently, we have started project activities, complex topics have started, and my ratings have dramatically dropped. In class, I still cope, but with homework in general there. We have events in which it is interesting to take part, and people are good - in my class and older too.
All last year I studied in England. Returned to Russia, because it is tin. Everything is very strict there: the form, the people are some kind of cold, uninteresting. I think that form is the last thing that should be in school. This is nonsense that clothes distract from study. If a person wants to learn, nothing will prevent him, and if he does not, his form will be distracting.
I miss a quiet hour at school. It would be great if you could sleep during the day.
I began to be interested in movies, because my mom and dad are producers. I have been dragging me from four years to the shooting sites, I got used to cameras and record machines (I don’t know what they are called). I was so imbued with this that I now wonder in general everything that is connected with playing in the theater, for example, with producing, directing.
When I was seven years old, I wanted to become a rider in a circus, but this idea somehow disappeared. I hope I will not lose interest in the cinema and will do it, or maybe I will do journalism - in general, some kind of creative work, where I have to invent and do.
My favorite actor - Ensel Elgort, he starred in the films "Kid on the drive," "Blame the Stars," in "Divergent." He has atypical heroes, he is always strange, in the role of some monster. I try not to watch Russian cinema, a little embarrassing. Just turn it on and off because it's not interesting.
I do not feel for thirteen, not because of some wisdom or brains, but because of how I interact with other people.
I already understand what problems I have with my character. I think when I grow up, I just learn to control them better. Sometimes there is such a mood that it is better to be with friends, and sometimes it is better than one. For example, when I’m angry, I don’t like to be alone, and when everything is fine, I’m normal.
I am friends with different people. It infuriates me when some friends say something bad about others. If a person cannot keep this to himself, I will not communicate with him. In general, at school, they often discuss someone behind their backs, but I try not to pay attention.
I love different music, it all depends not on the genre, but on the song. I can listen to Russian rap, and English, and something melodic. Sometimes I can watch or listen to something with my parents, I often like what they choose. Mom has a lot of songs that I like, and a lot of songs that I don't like, but she still puts them all the time.
Mom, we often quarrel, because I do not want to obey. She has her own installation, and I try to go against it. I do not live with my dad, but if I come to him, then, too, it happens, we quarrel, for example, when I come later than necessary.
I chose a profession for a long time. My dad and older brother are architects, I grew up in this environment, but I did not always think that I also wanted to be an architect.
My family does not pressure me, but sometimes I turn to her for advice. Of course, in a large family everything is not always smooth, but they support me, if necessary. I have great respect for my father, he has achieved so much in life, he has a large family, I am always ready to listen to him.
Now I have two favorite architects. The first is the Dane Bjarke Ingels. I respect him for the fact that at such a young age for an architect he had already done so much. The second is Le Corbusier, I really like his work and many of his ideas. The only Le Corbusier building in Russia is located on Myasnitskaya Street, one cannot get there, because there is some kind of unnecessary and uninteresting state bullshit in it, and one could make a cool museum there.
It happens that we quarrel with brothers and sisters - it used to come to a fight, but now we are more or less adults and we can agree. We are lucky that we have a large enough apartment, we are many, but everyone can go to their rooms and be alone with them. It seems to me that the most problems were in my childhood, when we all went somewhere with my parents. There are two of them, and there are seven of us, and you need to keep an eye on everyone: to collect things, passports so that no one will forget anything. I think my parents have problems, and many, but I, frankly, have almost no problems, everything suits me. In my opinion, everything is cool.
Probably someday I want to have a large family, but not as big as ours. It is too early to think about it, but it seems to me that three children are the best option.
Now I communicate with few other than relatives. All my school friends went somewhere, went to other countries, this is a normal stage - I also went to college and I need adaptation. I do not feel lonely, I do so much at the institute that I don’t have to be bored.
I do not even remember when I had a whole day off without thinking about what I need to pass at the institute. If there was free time, I would have slept a little longer, would have gone with my younger brothers to play football.
An adult is different from a child only in that he has experience. Otherwise, I do not see much difference. Parents can give a little freedom or a lot, trust a child or not trust. They trust me and my brothers and sisters very much, we could always agree with our parents and discuss everything calmly.
My friends did not always understand why they allow us so much. But it was because we were ready to take responsibility. My parents understood that if they let me go to the party, I would not do something super-dull. That is, of course, I do stupid things, but within reason.
I think you shouldn’t regret anything at all. You just live and do something, look around and rejoice. Or do not look back at all, but just go ahead.
My mother is incredibly tasty. We rarely help her in this, but we try to clean up after ourselves and wash the dishes, or at least set the rules by which everyone wash the dishes behind them.
The last couple of years we have been celebrating all the holidays in the country - in our house in Tarusa. Many friends come to us there for the New Year, everyone prepares something, helps, and then sleds. There we just have a good time, chillim, so to speak.
I graduated from nine classes and went to the drama and art college for the department of women's costume, now I'm in my second year. I am glad that I am studying in college: firstly, I don’t have to take the Unified State Exam, and secondly, I can do what I like, and not objects that are useless for me, like chemistry and physics.
My family is from Hungary, so I am thinking of going to Europe. Maybe even in Budapest, where my beloved grandmother lives, - and there already study or work.
In our college, almost everyone smokes. When the change begins, a lot of people go out. I do not smoke, but I also go out, because the most fun is happening in the smoking room. Just standing by, listening to what is happening.
I have a negative attitude towards alcohol abuse. When we meet with friends, we can drink a bottle of cider or beer, but not more. Buy alcohol is easy, just need friends who are already eighteen.
Sometimes it seems to me that I am very boring.
I am definitely an introvert, afraid of new companies, and it is difficult for me to find a common language with new people. I am currently reading Salinger "Catcher in the Rye." As my sister insisted, in English, because this language is useful to me.
I never like the way I look, no matter what I do with my appearance. I have an instagram, but I rarely upload something there, and when I post it, I delete it in fifteen minutes. I'm afraid of criticism from the side, especially if it is unfounded.
Mostly my friends are older than me for a year or two, or even three or four. Somehow it happened that my whole life, my environment was older, and I still like to communicate with more adults. You can learn something from them, I guess.
Sixteen is not so terrible, it was difficult for me at 13-14. I do not know whether my character has changed, or everything around. Everything irritated me, I strongly quarreled with my parents, I could throw a tantrum because of a trifle. I myself did not understand what I like, what I want to do. Now this period has passed, there is at least some kind of stability.
It scares me that when I turn eighteen, there will be more responsibility - I will need to somehow cope with it. I think that at this age you should do everything yourself. Parents already gently hint to me: "You will be eighteen in a year, you should think about what you will do, where you will eat." They consider it a shame to live with their parents after eighteen.
I discuss almost nothing with my parents except for studying. It so happened that our whole life we did not have a very close relationship, I never wanted to share with them. I didn’t need their support or attention, I feel fine without it. If I ask them something, they support me.
I am annoyed by couples who flaunt their relationship. I think this should be personal.
Семью в восемнадцать заводят, наверное, те, кому нечем заняться в жизни, или те, кто не может найти себя. Лично я считаю, что семью стоит заводить лет в тридцать или позже, когда ты успел набраться жизненного опыта, уже стоишь на ногах, построил какую-то карьеру.
Многие люди из моего окружения обсуждают политику, но я не люблю эти разговоры. Я почти ничего в этом не понимаю и даже не очень хочу вникать, думаю, меня это не особо касается.
Я ещё не определился, кем хочу быть, но это будет что-то связанное с кино и фотографией либо с дизайном и архитектурой. Пока непонятно, но я начал думать над тем, куда поступать.
Сейчас я скорее хочу продолжить учиться в России. А для второго высшего уже можно куда-нибудь поехать. Я не против попутешествовать и пожить в разных странах, но не очень долго. Постоянно я бы хотел жить только тут. В целом мне не очень нравится сложившаяся политическая ситуация. Но это моя родина, и я бы не хотел отсюда уезжать.
Мне очень нравится быть старшим братом: я никогда не буду одиноким в жизни. У меня хорошие отношения с сестрой.
I don’t remember being teased or teasing me. Maybe in the form of a joke, but no more. Bulling in my environment is not. But, of course, such a thing exists, and it must be fought. This is not something fictional.
I study all my life in the 57th school. Despite the fact that I got there absolutely by accident, the school became for me something of a second home. My life could have been completely different if I entered any other school. Firstly, there are often good, erudite and really interesting teachers there, and secondly, a circle of interesting people and like-minded people who can stay with you for life, and this, in my opinion, is much more valuable and less frequent is found.
I enjoy a lot of things: art, cinema, fashion. But I have no pronounced hobby. I'm not very interested in watching sports, but I understand why other people may be interested. In the summer I surf - if you can call it a sport, then it's my favorite.
Fashion has always been present in my life one way or another: both mom and dad have been working in this industry all their life, she could not get past me. I remember that in elementary school I was browsing the magazines Puprle, 032c, Face and Fantastic Man, of course, not understanding half of what is written in them. But it really interested me about a year ago, it all started with street fashion: Supreme, Gosh Rubchinsky and so on. True, now it takes me much less.
Probably Raf Simons remains my favorite designer (his name has been on my ear since he was ten), I later discovered Martin Margillou, Dries Van Nothen, Chitose Abe (Sacai), Gilles Zander and other designers whom I consider to be my favorite .
It’s not at all surprising that teenagers are addicted to street fashion - after all, they are her target audience. I think they find in it something that they don’t see in a higher, “catwalk” fashion: some earthiness, approximation to their own life, emphasized “coolness” and sometimes pretentiousness - let's not forget about Ponts.
My parents influenced my musical taste, I listen to both modern and relatively old music. The Cure, Doors, PJ Harvey, Sonic Youth, Coil, Joy Division / New Order, David Bowie, The Smiths, Massive Attack, Radiohead, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Morphine, Swans, Underworld.
The only thing that I never really tried to listen to was classical music (with the exception of avant-garde composers, such as John Cage or Steve Reich), although I would very much like to understand it. But this implies some kind of work for me, an effort over myself - until I can penetrate and begin to receive pleasure from it.
I learn about new music mainly through sites like Pitchfork, although rarely there is a situation in which I have nothing to listen to: I try to listen to groups with albums and to get some insight into their discography, and not to listen to compilations a la "The Very Best of ... "which, in my opinion, kill the essence of the group. We have a vinyl player at home and there is a collection of records, I often listen to music on it. This method seems outdated and expensive at first glance, but it still has charm, and the sound quality is incomparably better.
I am positive about rap: if two years ago I didn’t get into it, now I like it more and more. Tricky, Massive Attack, A Tribe Called Quest, Jungle Brothers, Beastie Boys, Death Grips, Odd Future, Wu-Tang Clan, Migos, Jay-Z's latest album and, of course, Kendrick. From the Russian I still like Husky and Krovostok.
I think rap is now the dominant genre in music, it’s just out of competition, in rock and genres that flow from it, nothing really fresh and interesting has been around for ten years, although there are still such giants as Radiohead and Swans playing that on the verge of rock. For me personally, with all the love of rock, it seems that he, at least in its purest form, has outlived itself and reached a dead end - it's time to look for something new.
I read books, but less than I would like: the Internet eats up a lot of time. But it seems to me that I read more than many. I like Salinger, Borges and Sasha Sokolov, although while I was reading he had only one book - “School for Fools”. She is now one of my favorites.
My happiest moment this year is the Desiigner concert. I hit the stage and almost cried from happiness. I was pulled there by his friend, whom we met before the performance. It was unexpected.
I started listening to rap five years ago with Wiz Khalifa and his song "Black and Yellow". Lil Uzi Vert, Kanye West, Future, Desiigner, Young Thug - in fact, now I listen to a lot of people. I love rap, but not Russian. Everyone listens to Faith, but I don't perceive that at all. If you listen to the words, this is complete nonsense. "I drop the West" - no, you do not drop. All the same type and rhythm is not very.
Now everyone takes something from each other, borrow. All repeats. And it's not just about music.
Since childhood I wanted to be a model - it was my little dream. I have a friend from Lumpen, who went to the Gosha Rubchinsky show. He suggested to me: “Try, photos of Duna, the founder of the agency, have come”. I laughed, thinking that they would not take me. But then I wrote to her direct, and she immediately answered me. Everything happened by chance. After that, I became interested in fashion. Before that, I didn't care.
I like street fashion, but I have no favorite brands.
I would like to develop as a model and I hope to achieve a lot in this. I would like to try myself as a designer. I want to enroll in fashion design at the Higher School of Economics, but so far I have not done anything for it.
In modeling I like the process itself, the atmosphere. You get tired, especially when shooting for twelve hours, but it's cool that then there are photos for memory - someday you can show them to your children.
My parents do not support me in this. And I like it. When I wanted to go to Paris, they said: "No, here you will be eighteen - do what you want." Then it made me very sad. In the 90s, everything was, as they believe, "through the bed." Of course, now this is not there, but mom is still sure that this is not so, and strongly opposed.
There are things that I can not tell my mother. But I can be close friends, I don’t have so many of them - two or three people. My surroundings are guys, guys from the agency too. We have a general chat, all the most interesting things that come across, we immediately drop there. I spend a lot of time on social networks - I literally do not let the phone out of my hands.
I was about eight years old when I registered on the VKontakte network. Then I constantly posted on the wall of characters from "Winx". Now I spend more time on instagram.
The worst thing in my school is form.
I was teased by the color of the class in the third, and it was insulting. And then everything somehow changed dramatically: many began to make compliments on the street. This is very strange: on the one hand, it is pleasant, on the other - scary, especially when they touch you.
ADDRESSES:
SVMoscow: Malaya Molchanovka, 6, tel. +7 (495) 215-53-51
The Athlete's Foot: Metropolis shopping center, Leningradskoe highway, 16A, p. 4, floor 3, +7 (495) 252-05-45
KM 20: Kuznetsky Most, 20, tel. +7 (495) 623-78-88
TsUM: Petrovka, 2, tel. +7 (495) 933-73-00
Prada: Bolshaya Dmitrovka, 20, p. 1, tel. +7 (495) 626-51-61
Aizel: Stoleshnikov per. 10, p. 3, +7 (495) 629-95-01
Monki: Atrium shopping center, Earthen Val, 33, +7 (495) 933-07-17
Kixbox: Tsvetnoy department store, Tsvetnoy blvd., 15, building 1, +7 (925) 286-65-36
EDITOR THANKS the studioPHOTOPLAY for help in organizing the shooting.