"Russian doll" (2000) - one of first films of Stavros Kazancidis. He was born on Cyprus, but in 1980 has moved to Australia. Very first his tape under the name "is dear to Alice" in 1992 was awarded with the Australian institute of cinema as the best short movie, and also has received the premium of the Edinburgh film festival as the best film of year among works of young directors. In 1997 he has put under the own script a picture "the Present love and chaos", invited on a film festival to Venice. As a producer Stavros Kazancidis worked with the picture which has thundered in Cannes "Love and other accidents" (1996) and a tape "the Strange planet" (1999). The film producer "Russian doll" Allana Zicerman has got acquainted with Kasancidis on the French film festival in Sydney in 1998. They in four hands also have written the script of "Russian doll".
Kasancidis was convinced, that Russian Jews and his ancestors - Greeks are very similar: "Both cultures are focused on a plentiful meal, on self-expression, emotional perception of world around and a complex of own fault in all mortal sins". So two projects have merged together: about a private detective and Russian woman. The first variant of the script was completed in April, 1999. To a role of detective Kazantsidis has invited the old friend of actor H'jugo Uivinga, which it is wide it is known. Agent Uivinga has offered on Itana David Uenema's role, also the known actor in Australia. It was necessary to find the performer of the Kate's role. Here again has carried "Russian Australian" to Natalia Novikovoj: after intensive search of her "have calculated" in Melbourne where she(it) played theatre. A leading role in "Russian doll" - a debut at cinema of an actress of Natalia Novikovoj, short of incidental roles in one French film and several soap operas. In film Kate's heroine nas a harsh Russian accent. Actually in English Natalia speaks fluently and without any accent , that it is no wonder: she ten years lives in Australia. Natalia comes from St. Petersburg, studied at philological faculty of university where studied French, Hungarian and Finnish. Then has married for an Australian man and has left with him for Brisbane where she worked as an interpreter in the international commission on preservation of Antarctic Region. And there has acted in drama school, has moved to Sydney, began to play Russian theatres. So that's how her cinema career began.