RT.Doc: 15 Years
by the Script of Truth

Galina Arkhipova

Deputy Director of the Documentary Broadcasting Directorate at RT

Artyom Somov

Artyom Somov was born in Sarapul, a small town in Udmurtia. In 2004, he graduated from Izhevsk State Technical University, where he studied to become a rocket engine engineer. While still a student, he started working at a local TV company. At RT.Doc, Artyom worked his way up from editor to chief director. He has made dozens of films on a variety of topics and visited more than 40 countries. Since 2022, he has been working in the Special Military Operation zone, shooting films on the frontline.

“My favourite genre in documentary filmmaking is observation. This approach allows viewers to fully immerse themselves in what’s happening. I can spend hours next to my subjects, observing them through a camera lens, barely saying a word. What happens in the frame must be the truth and nothing but the truth – that’s the most important thing for me.”

Olga Kiriy

Olga Kiriy was born in Tambov, Russia. She graduated from the Tambov branch of Moscow State University of Culture and Arts with a major in directing. She began her journalism career as a reporter for Channel One, covering key events in the North Caucasus, including terrorist attacks in Chechnya and Ingushetia, the Beslan school siege, and the 2008 Russo-Georgian war. She later worked on the Dobrov v Efire news programme at Ren TV. Olga joined RT.Doc in 2020 and has made more than 20 films since. As part of her work with RT.Doc, she has shot documentaries in various parts of Russia and abroad, including Egypt, Sakhalin, South Africa, Namibia, and Mongolia. Since 2022, Olga has been working in the Special Military Operation zone, filming on the frontline.

“For me, documentary filmmaking is creativity without the strict deadlines that reporters face. It’s also an opportunity to cover pressing issues, meet different people, and hear their fascinating stories. Working with RT.Doc, I’ve had a unique chance to see how people live in different parts of the world and visit places that would otherwise be inaccessible.”

Natalya Kadyrova

Natalya Kadyrova began working as a correspondent for a newspaper and TV while still in school. She graduated from Novosibirsk State University with a degree in journalism but later realised she was more interested in documentary filmmaking. She continued her studies at the Gerasimov Institute of Cinematography, majoring in non-fiction film directing in the workshop of T. Semyonov. Natalya has created more than 100 documentary films, many of which cover the most remote regions of the world, including Antarctica, the Arctic, African countries, and North Korea.

Natalya has extensive experience working in remote regions with harsh weather conditions. For example, while working on the documentary “Hot Race, Cold Dogs” (2017), Natalya and her cameraman followed dog sleds across Kamchatka to Chukotka on snowmobiles, sleeping in the tundra. For “Going with the Floe” (2019), she drifted on an ice floe near the North Pole for about two months alongside polar explorers.

The documentary “The Congo Dandies” (2015) has remained a viewer favourite for many years. The film has garnered more than 20 million views, and shots from it have become memes on social media. One of Natalya’s key areas of work is studying cultures that are seeking a balance between tradition and modernity. A significant portion of her films is dedicated to this theme, including “Torn From The Tundra” (2023), “Russian Marriage Quest” (2023), and “Voodoo Brides” (2022).

Natalya Kadyrova is a laureate of international and Russian festivals.

“What I find most exciting about making documentaries is the stories. These often turn out to be much more fascinating than the plots of blockbusters or thrillers because real life is far richer and more interesting than any work of fiction. Each new film is an opportunity to live alongside your subjects. It’s like having a bonus life,” says Natalya.

Lidia Vasilevskaya

Lidia Vasilevskaya was born and raised in Krasnodar. She graduated from Kuban State University before working in local television as a host and special correspondent. She moved to Moscow about 15 years ago, where she began working as a producer, mostly covering events onsite, including plane crashes and terrorist attacks. About 10 years ago, she joined the RT.Doc team. Lidia has made more than 30 documentary films, many of which have received awards at international festivals, including “My Forever Family” (The AIBs, 2019) and “Where Childhood Died” (OMNI Intermedia Awards, 2019, US International Film & Video Festival).

Abas Ali-Zade

Abas Ali-Zade was born in Baku, Azerbaijan. He graduated from St. Petersburg University of Culture and Arts’ Faculty of Directing and Producing. After graduating, he worked in St. Petersburg television, but he aspired to become a documentary filmmaker. While participating in an intensive drama workshop, Abas met RT.Doc head Ekaterina Yakovleva, who invited him to join the RT team.

“That’s how I moved to the capital to create documentary films, shoulder to shoulder with wonderful people – professionals from whom I learn every day. This is a team, or rather, even a family, where every single person immerses themselves completely in the human stories that we turn into films. People who are willing to risk their lives to show the viewer things they would never see in ordinary life. I believe we are doing something important for our country and the documentary genre as a whole.”

Lyudmila Shamanova

Lyudmila Shamanova was born in Buguruslan and graduated from Orenburg State University with a degree in journalism. She later earned a diploma as a screenwriter at the Gerasimov Institute of Cinematography in Moscow. Lyudmila joined the RT.Doc team in 2009 as a non-fiction film producer. She has worked on dozens of projects, including “Lady Cops of Afghanistan” and “Dying Alone”.

“Along with my colleagues, we bring creative ideas to life – ideas that sometimes seem crazy or impossible. And that’s what I love most about documentary filmmaking. I really enjoy the process of searching for captivating stories and interesting characters.”

Oleg Nekishev

Oleg Nekishev was born in Omsk. He entered television in 1996 and participated in restructuring the All-Russia State Television and Radio Broadcasting Company (VGTRK) along with notable TV broadcasting figures, including Mikhail Lesin, Eduard Sagalaev, and Valentin Khlebnikov. He served as Deputy Chairman of the Podmoskovye branch of the State Television and Radio Broadcasting Company, as well as Editor-in-Chief of four Digital Television Broadcasting channels. He “caught the directing bug” during his years of working alongside Ivan Dykhovichny and still maintains his life and creative principles.

Oleg began working with the RT channel in 2007 as the managing editor of the weekly With My Own Eyes documentary programme. He also headed the Arabic Broadcasting Directorate. In 2015, he moved to the Documentary Broadcasting Directorate as a director and has made about 40 documentary films since. He was one of the first to go to the Special Military Operation zone to shoot documentaries in early March 2022. Over the past two years, he has shot and edited more than 10 films at the front. He considers his best works to be “Poets on the Frontline”, “Theatre of War”, “Vostok Battalion Brotherhood”, and “Frontline Diary of an American Officer”.

Vyacheslav Guz

Vyacheslav Guz was born in Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan. He began his reporting career writing essays about workers at a local meat processing plant, which were published in the plant’s newspaper Meat Giant. Vyacheslav then graduated from the Faculty of Journalism at Moscow State University with a degree in literary work, worked at the Student Meridian magazine, and later focused on news journalism.

Since 1997, Vyacheslav’s resume has included several leading TV channels, including NTV, Channel One, TV-6, and REN TV. Vyacheslav has made dozens of documentary films and programmes at RT.Doc.

“For me, documentary filmmaking is an attempt to understand an ordinary person. What drives them? What values do they live by? Sometimes a conversation with a simple forester or fisherman helps provide answers to eternal questions: what is time, and what is the meaning of life? It seems to me that every documentary film, no matter what it’s about, is an attempt to answer these questions that humanity has been trying to solve for centuries.”

Aleksandr Avilov

Aleksandr began his career in 1993 as an assistant director and assistant cameraman at the St. Petersburg Documentary Film Studio. In 1997, he graduated from the St. Petersburg Institute of Culture, and in 1999, he completed a special course in documentary film production and investigative journalism at the Baltic Media Center in Denmark. He has worked as a director at various TV channels, including Kultura, Rossiya-1, NTV, Channel Five, and others. Aleksandr has made more than a hundred documentary films and TV programmes. He has been working at RT.Doc since 2012.

Vitaly Buzuev

Vitaly Buzuev was born in St. Petersburg into a family of an artist and a polar explorer, the head of the North Pole–13 station. From early childhood, Vitaly wanted to follow in his mother’s footsteps and become an artist. He completed a special school course for children at the Hermitage and received a gold medal for his work at an international competition in New York. Later, Vitaly entered the Faculty of Journalism at Moscow State University. After graduating, he worked for various newspapers, magazines, and radio stations, including the BBC Russian Service in London. After returning to Moscow, Buzuev joined the NTV team. He began with press reviews and then became a reporter and host of morning programmes. Vitaly has been working at RT.Doc since 2012. His film “Children of the Tundra” has garnered more than a million views on YouTube.

Mikhail Burov

Mikhail Burov was born in Moscow and graduated from the Russian State University of Physical Culture, Sports, Youth, and Tourism. He has travelled extensively and made amateur videos. Since 2013, Mikhail has participated in expeditions around the world, shooting commercial documentaries. From 2014 to 2016, he studied to become a director of photography at Moscow Film School. From 2016 to 2022, he shot documentary and feature films. In 2022, he joined RT.Doc. Mikhail shoots documentaries in the Special Military Operation zone, spending nights in trenches with soldiers. His war and social documentaries – “Vostok Battalion Brotherhood”, “Gods of War”, “The Frontline Grind”, “The Dream”, “Mirrors or Gold: Sketches by Manuel Izquierdo”, “Exclusion Zone. The Third Reich against the Serbs”, and others – tell poignant stories of people who have been working on the frontlines for years.

Ruslan Gusarov

As a television news reporter for NTV, Ruslan covered hotspots in the North Caucasus and the Middle East. He reported on the events of the Chechen campaigns, the invasion of international terrorist gangs into Dagestan, the counter-terrorist operation in the North Caucasus, the Beslan tragedy, the events of the Russo-Georgian war, mass unrest and clashes on the West Bank of the Jordan River and the Golan Heights, Operation Pillar of Cloud in the Gaza Strip, the ‘Arab Spring’, and its aftermath in Egypt and Turkey.

He has been working in the documentary broadcasting editorial office of RT since 2022. For RT.Doc, he has made and produced documentaries about Russia’s Special Military Operation in Ukraine, as well as the unity of the peoples of Russia, and strengthening interethnic relations. These include “We will survive”, “VolunTears”, “Sanctions: Opportunity in Disguise”, “Poets on the Frontline”, “Kindness with Fists”, “Callsign: 'Bukhanka'”, “Bards of the Russian Spring”, “The Warrior Was Alone”, “Volunteers For Victory”, “Brothers in Faith”, “War Сorrespondents”, and “Donbass Volunteers: United Strength”, ”I Want Peace & Quiet”.

“Documentary filmmaking is my dream. In my many years working as a newspaper and TV reporter, I not only gained experience in journalism and life, but also tried to study and shoot documentary films. It’s incredibly interesting – a huge field for creativity. Especially now, after many years in the ‘information marathon race,’ you’re completely immersed in the world of documentary filmmaking and working with an excellent team of RT.Doc professionals. In my view, documentary filmmaking is a genre and profession where you have the opportunity to pause the rush of life, look at the world anew, observe and rethink facts, phenomena, processes, and people’s destinies.”

Dmitry Khrustalev

Dmitry Khrustalev has been working in television for almost 20 years. He started at the “Vesti” program as an international editor and soon became a regular contributor to the weekly analytical program “Vesti on Saturday” with Sergey Brilev, while continuing to work in news. In 2014, shortly after the events at Maidan, he was appointed head of VGTRK's representative office in Ukraine. He worked in Kyiv and regularly went on air with live broadcasts. After returning to Moscow, he continued working on the “Vesti” program, while also starting to work on documentaries. Dmitry graduated from the Faculty of History at Moscow State University and has an interest in history, so the opportunity to make films on historical topics became a pleasant combination of work and personal interests. Since 2016, he has been a member of the Russian Historical Society. Since 2021, he has been a regular author for the RT.Doc channel.

Ekaterina Kitaiceva

Ekaterina Kitaiceva was born in Moscow, grew up in a family of documentary filmmakers, and since childhood could not imagine any other profession for herself. She fulfilled her dream and graduated from VGIK, earning two diplomas — as a producer and a feature film director. Ekaterina began her career in television in 1996 at NTV, where she made her first documentary films. She then worked on the TV channels “Russia-1”, TVC, and “Zvezda”. In 2021, Ekaterina joined RT.Doc. She is also a member of the Union of Cinematographers of Russia.

“Life is much more diverse than any screenwriter can imagine, and real human emotions cannot be compared to the acting of any actor, no matter how talented. This is what I love most about documentary cinema.”

Ekaterina Kozhakina

Ekaterina was born in Orenburg. She graduated from the directing department of VGIK. Since 2011, Ekaterina has worked as a screenwriter and director of documentary films for several production companies and Russian national television channels. In 2016, Ekaterina joined RT.Doc and is currently a director, author, and camerawoman for her films.

“Working at RT.Doc for me is an opportunity to discover my country and the world. It's a chance to meet interesting people I would never have met had I chosen a different career path. It's also an opportunity to tell their stories to the world and help them change their lives for the better.”

Elena Norkunaite

Elena Norkunaite was born in Vilnius, Lithuania. She moved to Russia at age 11. She graduated from the Immanuel Kant Baltic Federal University in Kaliningrad with a degree in history and teaching. But by calling, she is a reporter and screenwriter. She has been working in journalism for almost 20 years — news, crime, and entertainment. Currently, Elena is an author and correspondent for the documentary channel RT.Doc.

Andrey Zorin

Andrey Zorin has been working at the RT channel since 2016. During this time, he has served as a producer on more than 80 projects of various kinds — from sports programs to films about the Great Patriotic War.

Aaron Mikhailov

Aaron Mikhailov was born in Nalchik, Kabardino-Balkaria. Before moving to Moscow, he lived in Pyatigorsk. He studied international journalism at the Institute of International Relations of Pyatigorsk State University. Right after graduation, he worked as a producer and moderator of TASS press conferences in the North Caucasus. After completing RT School, he moved to Moscow and started working as an editor in the newsroom of RT International. Having gone through a rich news “school of life”, Aaron realized that he was drawn to a more creative format. He moved to the Documentary Broadcasting Directorate as a documentary film producer. During his time there, he has produced many projects and continues to actively develop in documentary filmmaking.

Vartan Khachaturyan

Vartan Khachaturyan was born in Moscow. He received his secondary specialized education at the Gerasimov Institute of Cinematography’s College of Television and Multimedia. He worked on film sets from the age of 16 – in movies, commercials, and TV series. After completing his military service, he entered the Institute of Cinema and Television (GITR) to study film and television producing, graduating in 2019. While still a student, he worked for news outlets producing special projects and shooting reports. He has been with RT since 2022, eventually moving from news producing to the Documentary Broadcasting Directorate. Over the past year, he has produced more than thirty documentary films, working alongside colleagues across all fronts of the Special Military Operation zone.

Vladimir Lipatov

Vladimir Lipatov was born in the USSR. He studied in a non-core field but later completed specialized training. He began his career at various TV channels as a news cameraman. Over time, Vladimir moved into documentary filmmaking and joined the RT.Doc team. He has shot films on several continents, from Latin America to Africa. He hasn’t made it to Antarctica yet, but there’s still time!

“Shooting documentaries is fascinating anywhere in the world, but home is still more interesting.”

Kirill Puzyrny

Kirill Puzyrny was born in Arkhangelsk and began his television career at the local State Television and Radio Broadcasting Company. After moving to Moscow, he worked in large-scale film production, shooting films on a wide range of topics. In 2023, he joined the team of like-minded professionals at RT.Doc. Since the beginning of the Special Military Operation, he has been to combat zones multiple times, filming in the Donetsk People’s Republic and the Lugansk People’s Republic, as well as Kursk and Belgorod. He has mastered the intricacies of making war documentaries and contributed to films including “Steel Savers”, “Kindness with Fists”, “Fortress of Faith”, “Toxic War”, “Frontline Belgorod”, “Sisters of Mercy”, “Kursk Tuning Fork”, and many others.

“I really love my profession. It provides an opportunity to learn something new every day,” he says.

Aleksey Balakirev

Aleksey Balakirev entered television in the mid-90s, right after finishing school. He gained great experience at a small city TV company and graduated from Krasnodar State University of Culture. He studied under masters of documentary filmmaking and completed an advanced professional training course at the Gerasimov Institute of Cinematography. He has worked at REN TV, the All-Russia State Television and Radio Broadcasting Company, and NTV. Aleksey Balakirev joined the RT.Doc team in 2023 as a cameraman. In this short time, he has taken part in a large number of projects, including “Hero Wives”, “I Want Peace & Quiet”, “Yakuts at War”, “Voices from the grave”, “Mali: Au Revoir, France”, “Nuclear Watchdogs”, “Marriage Scammer: Till Cash Do Us Part”, “Man of Iron”, “We are Russia!”, and others.

Anton Meshcheryakov

Anton Meshcheryakov graduated from the Moscow School of Cinema, where he studied cinematography under I. V. Demin. With more than ten years under his belt in the profession, he has participated in various television and film projects. He has shot over 30 documentary films, some of which have won awards at film festivals.

“For me, every project is an opportunity to tell a story, capture emotions, and convey the atmosphere of the moment. My work also includes feature films, music videos, and commercials, which allows me to experiment with form and imagery. I firmly believe that the Russian school of cinematography is one of the strongest in the world, and I am proud to contribute to its development. Every day I strive for excellence, exploring new horizons in the art of visual storytelling.”

Ilya Andilevko

Ilya Andilevko was born in central Russia, in Tambov – a city where melodious Russian speech stretches like a thread from a spinning wheel. Soon, the family moved to his father’s place of military service in Karelia, a land of dense forests and a thousand lakes. In his youth, Ilya already felt the need to share little discoveries about life with others, which was probably why he started working in television at the age of 18, happy to tell the residents of the Russian north all about the amazing history of the land they inhabit.

Creative passion and the desire to become a film director led him to the country’s northern capital, where he entered St. Petersburg University of Film and Television. He graduated from the Directing Workshop founded by the icon of the Leningrad documentary filmmaking school, Viktor Semenyuk, and the legendary TV director, Aleksandr Krivonos. Utilizing the secrets revealed by the masters, Ilya made both feature and documentary films, winning awards at the ‘Message to Man’, ‘Flahertiana’, and ‘Russia’ film festivals, among others. He also worked as a reporter in St. Petersburg, which gave him the chance to become well acquainted with every hall in the State Hermitage and the Russian Museum.

‘Just as with other forms of art, a documentary film is made to delve into life’s paradoxes, to reveal them to the audience, and to help viewers make sense of them. A documentary filmmaker must expose the naked truth about the contradictions in our world, with all their colour and pain. I always try to capture the elusive within my works: to film the miracle that always finds a place in the world around us.’

Alexander Kharchenko

Alexander Kharchenko was born into the family of a Russian military officer. It’s no surprise that covering combat operations became his mission. He came to RT.Doc after a long career at other media outlets. For more than ten years, he dedicated himself to covering hostilities in southeastern Ukraine, Syria, Nagorno-Karabakh, Lebanon, and Africa. During this time, he made about ten films and hundreds of reports on military topics. Since 2022, he has been working in the Special Military Operation zone.

“I’m glad I ended up in a team of professionals at RT.Doc who complement each other. In such an environment, amazing ideas are born that find their expression on the screen.”