General information for TV crews travelling to Altai region
The Altai Krai is a region in Western Siberia, with its capital in the city of Barnaul. An incredible spot for filming. People began to settle down in this part of Siberia in the XVII c. The oldest buildings of Barnaul were founded a century later: this city was designed in the image of St. Petersburg, and thus had a very strict building plan of its center.
There are two different provinces: the Republic of Altai and the Altai Krai. You will probably have to google the distance to a certain location. However, Barnaul, the capital of the Altai Krai, is 4h 20min flight from St. Petersburg and 4h flight from Moscow.
In Barnaul, you can film the late XIX c. merchants’ houses, for instance, the wooden house of Shadrin, or the apartment house of Averintsev. Residential buildings of the beginning of the XX c. and merchants’ trading arcades can be filmed on the Leo Tolstoy street, the oldest street of Barnaul. The architectural ensemble of the Demidov square, also one of the oldest
places in the city, is designed in the Russian classicism style: the Barnaul Technical school and the Mining Hospital are placed in strictly-symmetrical white and yellow two-storied buildings with small yet elegant colonnades. To honor the 100th anniversary of mining in the Altai the Demidov pillar was erected in the middle of the square.
Locations for filming in Altai.
The Museum of Mountain pharmacy is yet another interesting place in Barnaul. Since the XVIII c., medicines from local herbs were made here and then distributed among the hospitals of Siberia, as well as patient-care items and medical books.
The Barnaul Pokrovsky Cathedral (1903) is a red brick temple in the pseudo-Russian style. The interior of the Cathedral has paintings created by the world-famous Russian academic painters, M. V. Nesterov, V. M. Vasnetsov, and I. N. Kramskoy. The Altai Krai is famous for its nature. There are few architectural monuments here; nevertheless, Altai is one of the most touristically developed regions of Russia. For many people, Altai is a region of energetically powerful sites that can help to get in touch with some other worlds and obtain insights on life. This mystical image has support in the fact that shamanism is widespread among the indigenous peoples of Altai.
In the Uymon valley, in the village of Verh-Uymon, there is a cultural center named after the Roerichs. The famous Russian artist Roerich traveled a lot in Altai and was interested in the religious beliefs of the locals. In the cultural center our fixers can help you in filming traditional Altaians’ activities, shamanic rituals, and of course the life in aili – traditional houses.
A lot of the Russian Old Believers were forced to flee Central Russia. Many of them settled in Siberia, in the Uymon valley. Some of them became wealthy merchants and moved to Barnaul. But many of them ran away from secular life: they built large wooden izbas isolated from other villages and tilled the land. These settlements remain in good condition to this day, and in the Roerich cultural center, you can film some of them revealing the everyday life of a Siberian Old Believer peasant.
Great locations and stories to film in the Altai region.
Altai is famous for its archaeological findings, including petroglyphs. A lot of them are in the Kalbak-Tash complex. There are about eight thousand drawings from the Neolithic era to the VIII-X c. Our fixers can also help you in filming another ancient sanctuary, the sheer rock Seterlu located in the basin of the Karakol river.
Denisova cave is located 150 km from Barnaul. Several generations of ancient people, the Denisovians and the Neandertahls among them were living in this 270-meter cave. As a result – archeologist found here their household items such as needles, toys, ritual figures, and also food scraps. Now, it is an easily accessible tourist destination. A very popular spot for filming in Altai.
Natural filming locations in Altai republic and Altai krai.
In Altai, you can film the incredible natural phenomenon of colored lakes. The water is of an unusual color because of the microorganisms living in it. Not far from lake Kucherlinskoe there are three rather traditionally looking lakes: the Green, the Blue, and the Turquoise. However, there are also two bright-pink Burlinsky and Kuchuk lakes. There is even a Golden lake in Altai!
The so-called Golden Mountains of Altai is an area on the borders of Russia (the Mountain Republic of Altai, Tuva Republic, and the Altai Krai), Mongolia, Kazakhstan and China included in the UNESCO World Heritage list. It consists of the Katun Natural Reserve, the Lake Teletskoye, the Belukha Mountain, and the Ukok Plateau. The Pazyryk nomads, a civilization of Siberian Scythians, inhabited the steppe of the Ukok plateau in the VI – III c. BC. Found in the complex of Ukok kurgans: Carpets, jewelery, embroided fabrics as well as several mummies. You can film the mummies, the famous Siberian Ice Maiden among them, in the Anokhin National Museum in the city of Gorno-Altaysk. But unfortunately, the rest of the findings are located at the State Hermitage Museum in Saint-Petersburg.
Please send us a description of the project you plan filming in Altai. Contact us and our fixers will send you a list of permits required for your filming.
More information about filming at Altai Republic can be found at our partner website Filmsiberia.com