Film director Ivan Pavlov has released a feature movie about two Belarusian military pilots who died steering a crashing aircraft away from Baranavichy. The film, titled One for Two, honors Major Andrey Nichiporchik and Lieutenant Nikita Kukonenko, who crashed during a training flight five years ago after a technical malfunction struck their Yak-130 training jet.
Both airmen steered the plane away from residential quarters in the city of Baranavichy before the crash, leaving them no time to eject from the cockpit. Both pilots were posthumously awarded the title Hero of Belarus for their sacrifice.
Speaking at the Belarusfilm studio in Minsk, Pavlov described his office, which contains model aircraft from a childhood aeromodelling hobby alongside propellers, blades, and a leather flight helmet. Belarusfilm is the national film studio of Belarus, where Pavlov navigated past crowds of extras in the corridors to discuss the project.
Origin of the military film
Pavlov explained that the Ministry of Defence initially approached him to make a film commemorating the 105th anniversary of the army. The ministry offered him a choice between making a movie about Hero of Belarus Vladimir Karvat or focusing on Nichiporchik and Kukonenko. Pavlov selected Nichiporchik and Kukonenko because he wanted to examine the nature of heroism and why an individual chooses to perform a heroic act.
Pavlov noted that during the flight malfunction, the flight controller ordered the crew to leave the aircraft. Major Andrey Nichiporchik stated that the city was beneath them. Lieutenant Nikita Kukonenko sat in the rear seat as co-pilot and was not controlling the plane, but Pavlov pointed out that had Kukonenko pulled the ejection handle, both men would have left the cockpit together, meaning Kukonenko also made a deliberate choice in those final seconds.
Writing and reactions to the drama
Pavlov spent two years writing the script, which underwent six revisions. He said working with the real-life tragedy was challenging because One for Two is a feature film requiring character relationships, conflicts, and antagonists. Because the real event lacked personal conflicts or antagonists, Pavlov felt an ethical duty to prioritize the feelings of the pilots' parents over dramatic exaggeration.
The parents of the fallen pilots watched the completed film with tears and expressed no negative criticism. The mother of Nikita Kukonenko told Pavlov that watching the movie helped her understand what her son was thinking in his final moments. Military pilots who viewed the film offered only one complaint, noting that too few flight scenes were shown, as a pilot's life truly begins after takeoff.
Teaching at the Belarusian State Academy of Arts
Pavlov also serves as dean of the Faculty of Cinema, Theatre and Television at the Belarusian State Academy of Arts in Minsk. Although the academy no longer assigns master instructors to guide entry classes, Pavlov actively inspects all courses and examinations to engage with directing students as a practicing professional.
He observed that applicants entering directing programs have grown noticeably younger, arriving straight from school without accumulated life experience or broad reading habits. Pavlov remarked that dramaturgy has not changed over time, remaining constrained to 36 classic story plots.
This year, the academy organized a diploma film screening for television directors at the Pobeda cinema in Minsk. Pavlov noted that student reports gained a completely different impact on a large cinema screen, matching his own experience watching flight sequences from One for Two at the Moskva cinema.
Acting philosophy and casting methods
In addition to directing, Pavlov maintains an acting filmography, though he regards acting as a secondary role taken on mainly to assist colleagues. He recalled needing 24 hours of complete bed rest to recover after filming an emotionally demanding scene for the movie The Drilling Rig. In that role, his character delivered a dialogue of repentance to the son of a man who died through his fault, leaving Pavlov physically drained.
Pavlov contrasts deep emotional investment with actors who rely on superficial techniques without personal cost before leaving to watch football. He demands that his acting students learn to spend themselves emotionally even during rehearsals.
Following his work on the television series Mukhtar, Pavlov realized he could collaborate with any actor. He compares his casting process to carving a wooden spoon, outlining the basic shape first before sanding the performance to explore internal monologues.
Director freedom and artificial intelligence
Addressing directorial freedom, Pavlov observed that artificial intelligence can format camera scripts, position equipment, and set lighting angles to construct a clear video narrative. However, he stressed that artificial intelligence on set cannot determine whether an actress expressing love is delivering emotional truth.
Pavlov prefers shooting serious dramatic scenes in a single continuous shot from camera start to finish. He explained that directors face two options when adapting literature like Dostoevsky's Demons: simply transferring the book to screen or using the material to share a personal message with the world.
Recalling his work on the television series Oh, Mummies!, Pavlov stated that if even one woman decided against an abortion after watching the show, the entire production effort was worthwhile.
Future film projects
Looking ahead, Pavlov is preparing two film projects focused on honorable men of conscience. He also plans to direct a feature film about Minsk centered on local myths and urban legends.
