Director: 

Ana Urushadze

Genre: 

Drama

Country/Region of Production: 

Georgia, Estonia, Türkiye, Switzerland

Synopsis: 

After a long hiatus, the actor, a star of Georgian cinema, attends the casting call of a young female director, where for the first time in his life he is asked to play a supporting role of a bizarre and unsympathetic character. He leaves the casting unconvinced, bordering on insulted, accustomed to playing leading parts and charming heroic protagonists. Later, he recalls the casting experience and mocks the ambitions of the young director, referring to the project as a pretentious and pathetic attempt to squeeze all the philosophy she had gathered throughout her little life into her first film. However, as the story unfolds, we observe him gradually succumbing to the offered part and becoming enchanted by the strange and the unknown, triggering something in him and starting an irreversible process of self-transformation. The actor, without realizing it himself, starts getting into character and seemingly unconsciously, accepts the role he has been offered to play.

Why we recommend it: 

"Supporting Role" is the much-anticipated second feature film from one of the most distinct voices of contemporary Georgian cinema Ana Urushadze. "Supporting Role" is a modern fairytale, a universal story, which confronts the past and a depressing present status quo, to reach a paradigm shift, which reveals new truths. The film focuses on pressing issues of the day, covering everything from neurodiversity to aging, from family relations to public image, and from the film industry to the female gaze.

The main character, Niaz, is masterfully portrayed by acclaimed Georgian actor Dato Bakhtadze, whose nuanced and compelling performance is complemented by a range of striking supporting characters. "Supporting Role" draws on a universal, almost classical narrative, yet does so through a new female-first lens and to an extremely high artistic standard.