
294 - Vladimir Karamazov
Om avsnittet
Born in Sofia (Bulgaria), Vladimir Karamazov graduated classical drama theatre at the National Academy of Theatre and Film Arts. He has a 25 years career as a professional actor and part of the company of the Bulgarian National Theater “Ivan Vazov”. He has performed many roles in theatre cinema and television, but has always loved photography making it his occupation since 2019. He looks for the images, the places, the atmosphere of the plays in which he has performed. And looks for special people with dramatic and interesting stories. Photography helps him understand humanity in its complexity and scale, and reveals the true nature of it. Over the past few years, he has won a number of photography competitions, including from Sony World Photo Awards, the British Journal of Photography and Lensculture.
Vladimir recently published his debut photobook with GOST books, For the Grace of God, which takes takes us into the notorious Belene Prison, located in northern Bulgaria on the border with Romania; the most heavily guarded facility of its type in the country. The work focusses primarily on inmates serving life sentences without parole.
On episode 294, Vladimir discusses, among other things;
- First night nerves as an actor.
- Thinking only about photography.
- The potential for identity crisis as actor turned photographer.
- How acting taught him about narrative.
- Learning from Anders Petersen.
- How he became curious about life inside prison.
- And how he found his way into the project.
- Solving the question of what a prisoner without parole looks like.
- Learning a lesson in forgiveness.
- Getting help from George Georgiou and Vanessa Winship.
- An insight into the childhoods of prisoners as the source of their criminality.
- Not wanting to give his phone number and changing his mind about doing that.
- Next project on a prison for young offenders.
- A story of hope for a prisoner who was released after 26 years in prison.
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A Small Voice: Conversations with photographers and filmmakers med Ben Smith finns tillgänglig på flera plattformar. Informationen på denna sida kommer från offentliga podd-flöden.