To Catch the Kaidash

Synopsis

The plot is loosely based on the novel Kaidash's Family of the Ukrainian writer Ivan Nechuy-Levytskyi. In the original, the events take place in the 1860s, several years after the cancellation of serfdom. The creator of the series Nataliia Vorozhbyt introduced many modifications in comparison with the original – the events were shifted to the period of 2000s-2010s and new storylines were added. The events of the TV series unravel chronologically from 2005 to 2014, during a decade of independent Ukraine. The main storylines display an immutable dispute between two generations of the same family – parents and children. The plot of the TV series is full of dramatic confrontations between all family members. The climax of the conflict took place in 2014, when the family is polarized by the attitude to the Maidan. One of Kaidash's sons, Lavrin, expresses his patriotic opinions during hard times for Ukraine and joins the struggle for independence. He decides to become a volunteer fighter and defend Ukraine from Russian aggression. At the same time, another Kaidash's son, Karpo, becomes a supporter of Russia. He accused the "maidanuti" (the disparaging name for the participants of the protest against Yanukovych in 2013–14) of the Revolution of Dignity and the annexation of Crimea and Donbass by Russia. The 12th episode ends in a cliffhanger.

Original title

The first title of the series, as proposed by the creator Nataliia Vorozhbyt, was "Kaidash's Family of the XXI century". This is the project title used in the contract between the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine and PROKINO LLC on the production of the film, signed in November 2018.

However, the screenwriter herself interprets the idiomatic expression "to catch the Kaidash", which means to become distressed or to reflect on life, as more modern and appropriate.

The executives immediately liked the name, although the promotional department wanted to restore the original title because the viewer would have more associations with the novel. The creator of the TV-series and the creative team supported the title "to Catch the Kaidash" because Kaidash's Family would sound outdated. Besides everybody familiar with the book would expect a film version and would be disappointed with the modern adaptation. Then, those people who hated Kaidash's Family when reading it at school would not have watched it because of the title.

Cast

Main

Viktor Zhdanov – Omelko Kaidash, father (auto mechanic)

Iryna Mak — Marusia Kaidashykha, mother (housewife)

Taras Tsymbaliuk — Karpo Kaidash, the eldest son (auto mechanic)

Hryhoriy Baklanov — Lavrin Kaidash, the youngest son (builder)

Antonina Khyzhniak — Motria Kaidashenchykha, the eldest daughter-in-law (accountant)

Daryna Fedyna — Melashka Kaidashenchykha, the youngest daughter-in-law (schoolgirl, then housewife)

Yuliia Vrublevska — Tetiana (Tania), Kaidash's neighbor (housewife)

Supporting

Roman Yasinovskyi — Artem Holovyshyn, Motria's ex-boyfriend

Olena Hall-Savalska — "holovykha", the principal of the village council, Artem's mother

Khrystyna Fedorak — Svietka, an accountant for the village council

Liubov Kolesnykova — Palazhka Solovyikha, Tetiana's grandmother

Nina Naboka – Baba Paraska / Paraska Hryshykha

Yaroslav Bezkorovainyi — Vasyl, Karpo's friend

Andriy Lutsenko — Motria's dad, Dovbysh

Tetiana Kryzhanivska — Motria's mother, Dovbyshykha

Anatoliy Sakhno — cameo appearance, father of Melashka Balash

Nataliia Vorozhbyt — cameo appearance, mother of Melashka Balash

Oleksandr Timenko — cameo appearance, veterinarian

Ostap Dziadek — Monk

Serhiy Kyiashko — Sasha, Melashka's lover

Ihor Nazarov

Volodymyr Honcharov – doctor

Oleksandr Okhrytskyi – café administrator

Anastasia Hyrenkova – Allochka

Yuliya Pershuta — Iryna, Lavrin's housemate in Bohuslav

Creative team

The creative team of the TV series included:

Production director – Oleksandr Timenko

Cinematographer – Anatoliy Sakhno

Artistic director – Vadym Shynkarov

Producers: Liudmyla Semchuk, Dmytro Kitsai, Volodymyr Borodianskyi

Executive producer – Yehor Malykhin

Screenwriter and executive producer (showrunner) is Nataliia Vorozhbyt.

Production

Precedent stage performance

Initially, Nataliia Vorozhbyt created her reinterpretation of the original Ivan Nechuy-Levytsky's novel Kaidash's Family in the form of a play, and the performance "To Catch the Kaidash" was staged by Kyiv Wild Theater (directed by Maksym Holenko).

The first performance "To Catch the Kaidash" took place on May 25, 2019, at the Mystetskyi Arsenal during the Book Arsenal in 2019.

Subsequently, Vorozhbyt elaborated the play script and turned it into a full-fledged modern performance "The Kaidashes 2.0", which was included in the repertoire of Kyiv Wild Theater (directed by Maxim Golenko).

The performance "The Kaidashes 2.0" was first shown on August 2, 2019, at the House of Culture of the village of Sorokotyaga, Cherkasy region, and on August 30, 2019, in Kyiv in the theater space "Stage 6".

Script

Volodymyr Borodianskyi, general producer of STB (TV channel), commissioned Nataliia Vorozhbyt's script. The screenwriting took a year and a half in "comfortable conditions": without outside interference and editorial changes. Compared to the novel The Kaidash Family, new characters and many original storylines were incorporated into the script of the TV series.

After the release, Nataliia Vorozhbyt claimed that the funding provided to the TV series creators was not enough to shoot the story in its entirety, so they filmed in "rather difficult" conditions. In particular, many scenes and details from the script were not shot and were not included into the TV version.

Budget

After the change of the STB channel management, the new creative producer of StarLightFilms Dmytro Kitsai offered Vorozhbyt to become a showrunner of the project and apply for the government financial support.

The project called "Kaidash's Family XXI" won the competition of patriotic films run by the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine in 2018, so the filming of the TV series was 50% funded by the government: with a total budget of ₴26.7 million, the Ministry of Culture allocated half of the cost — ₴13.3 million.

Filming

The filming locations of "To Catch the Kaidash" were a film studio in Kyiv, the village of Dereviana, Obukhiv district, Kyiv region, and the surrounding villages (Khalepia, Yatsky, and Lypovyi Skytok). For filming, the producers specifically built a wooden courtyard and a house for the Kaidash family. Overall, the shooting lasted three months from March to May 2019. The shooting was carried out by the production company PROKINO of the StarLightMedia group. Obukhiv is mentioned in the seventh episode of the TV series – Lavrin Kaidash goes to work there.

Soundtrack

The music in the TV series was mostly Ukrainian and some Russian pop music of the 1990s and early 2000s: the song "Poliubi menia takoi" ("Love me like that") by Natalia Mohylevska, «Dym sigaret s mentolom» ("Smoke of menthol cigarettes") by Nensi, "Sneg" ("Snow") by Iryna Bilyk and Philip Kirkorov, "Kapli Absenta" ("Drops of absinth") by Irakli, etc.

After the release of the TV series, the screenwriter and executive producer Nataliia Vorozhbyt said that she did not regret using Russian-language pop music in the series, as it was "the reality of life".

Vorozhbyt also admitted that initially, according to the idea of the creators, one of the songs of the Russian group Ruki Vverkh! was to play in the first episode. However, this never happened because currently, due to "financial" or "political" reasons, the creators of the Ukrainian TV series almost do not have the opportunity to buy the rights to songs of Russian artists (the producers were able to acquire the rights to the song of Nancy solely thanks to "mutual acquaintances").

In addition to Russian-language songs, the TV series also uses original instrumental music of the Ukrainian ethnic-group DakhaBrakha, written by the composer specifically for the TV series, and the track "Shcho z-pod duba" ("From Under the Oak"). According to Nataliia Vorozhbyt, the creative team wanted to buy more songs of DakhaBrakha, but the project had a limited budget.

Moreover, in the TV series there are Ukrainian folk and popular songs:

"Oy Vershe Miy, Vershe" ("Oh Mountain, My Mountain")

"Oy, u vishnevomu sadu" ("In the Cherry Orchard")

"Zeleneye zhyto, zelene" ("Green Rye")

"Dva kol'ori" ("Two colors") (this song appears at the end of the final, 12th episode of the TV series)

"A ja vse dyvliusia de moja Marusia" ("And I Always Look to See Where my Dear Mary Is")

Language

According to the agreement with the Ministry of Culture about the creation of a national patriotic film, signed in February 2018, and according to the law "On Cinematography", at least 90% of the film's lines must be in Ukrainian and no more than 10% in a foreign language.

In the final version, some of the characters of the series speak surzhyk (mixed sociolects of Ukrainian and Russian languages). Even during the filming, the actor Taras Tsimbaliuk said that the series was being filmed in "flavorsome surzhyk":

According to actor Taras Tsymbaliuk, surzhyk "unites all the Ukrainian colorful villages. The actors will present themselves to the audience as simply as possible, as if it were a dialogue behind the fence of an ordinary Bohuslav family.

Nataliia Vorozhbyt, the screenwriterwriter, does not consider the language of the series to be surzhyk, calling it "colloquial Ukrainian," which "has more than 70% of Ukrainian words. According to Vorozhbyt, it was the selection of convenient organic words and constructions that helped the actors get into their characters into.

In addition to surzhyk and Ukrainian, the TV series also features Russian, which is spoken by three supporting characters.

Release

In Ukraine, the premiere of the TV series was originally planned on the STB channel in late February 2020, but was later postponed to March 2, 2020.

Seasons and episodes

Season 1

Lavrin returns from the military service and is greeted by his family. His neighbor Tania is especially pleased to see him and makes love with Lavrin on the first night after his return to spite Karpo. At the same party, Karpo sees Motria and falls in love with her. He invites her to the club, but she comes with Artem, the son of the collective farm chairman. Lavrin hangs out with other girls, while Karpo is pining for Motria. He is certain that she is marrying Artem. Kaidashykha advises Karpo to confess his sins. He goes to the church and meets Motria there. She says that she is not getting married, but is going to work in the town. On the day of her departure, Karpo kidnaps her right from the bus stop.

Tania catches Karpo and Motria making love in the woods. She is desperate. Motria forces Karpo to propose to her. Their parents are against the marriage. Kaidash is forced to get into debt because of the wedding. Tania tries to poison herself with medicines on the wedding day. Lavrin goes with her to the hospital, she is saved and he finds out about her pregnancy. During the wedding, Karpo finds out that Motria slept with Artem. He makes a scene because she was lying to him. As a condition of reconciliation, he requires to move from Motria's wealthy parents to the Kaidash family. Motria's wedding night takes place in the brothers' shared room, and already at six in the morning Kaidashykha wakes her up for work.

Motria tries to please her mother-in-law and does all the housework, but overhears Kaidashykha discussing her with Baba Palazhka, calling her lazy. Motria takes revenge and quarrels break out in the Kaidash house. Kaidash gets the blue devils for the first time during one of the quarrels. Motria accidentally finds Tania's letter in which she confesses her love and that she is pregnant by Karpo. Motria and Karpo quarrel and reconcile passionately. Lavrin sleeps in the kitchen, reads books and goes out with the girls. He is fed up with the arguments, and he, along with Artem, goes to work in the nearest town – Bohuslav. On Christmas, Lavrin comes back home and catches a grand scandal. He goes to Tania and sees her pregnant.

Every weekend Lavrin comes to the village from work and brings gifts not only for the relatives, but also for Tania, who recently gave birth to a girl. There are rumors in the village that Lavrin helps her for a reason. Tania gratefully accepts the help and has hope that Lavrin will marry her. Karpo is worried, suspecting that Tania's baby is his. Motria, who can't get pregnant, is even angrier because of this. Motria takes a job at the village council as an accountant. This causes Karpo to be jealous, because her boss is Artem's mother. Lavrin promises to go with Tania to the Pentecost celebration, but the day before he meets the girl of his dreams – Melashka.

Television ratings

During the premiere showing of the series on STB TV channel from March 2 to 11, 2020, 10.5 million viewers tuned in. More than 1,800,000 viewers watched the first episode on YouTube.

Reviews

After the broadcast in the spring of 2020, the series drew a significant response in the Ukrainian society. In particular, after the release of the series, it received positive reviews on social media, with users expressing their admiration for the choice of the cast, making the series one of the most discussed projects. Many reviewers called the series a "mirror" of the Ukrainians' real life. In addition, it has been repeatedly compared on social media with the TV series "Svaty" (adding that it is for "a more intelligent" audience).

At the same time, the series received contradictory reviews from film critics, whose reactions ranged from absolute delight to complete disappointment with the series. According to some film critics and viewers, one of the biggest drawbacks of the series is the use of surzhyk.

Film critic Serhiy Trymbach spoke positively about the series. In his opinion, the filmmakers managed to "place all the characters on the film "board" very accurately", corresponding to the motif of Ivan Nechuy-Levytskyi's novel. He also noted the language changes between the early series and later ones:

it is emphasized that the tear-off calendar <...> is in Russian, i.e. in the usual imperial discourse. And in the final episodes, the calendar is already in Ukrainian, as well as the songs (in the first episodes we hear mostly Russian pop music), radio and TV. That is, the words, the language itself begin to feel differently, they themselves become something else.

Ukrainian writer Serhiy Zhadan commented favorably on the film, calling it "an incredibly important and vivid phenomenon" of the Ukrainian cinematography. In his opinion, "no one has spoken so simply and convincingly about Ukrainians for a long time".

Nazar Danchyshyn, a reviewer, positively assessed Nataliia Vorozhbyt's parallels between Ukraine in Nechuy-Levytskyi's work and Ukraine after the proclamation of Independence. In particular, he draws an analogy between the serfdom abolition and the compulsory collective farms abolition after which the peasants live in the novel and TV series respectively. Danchyshyn also commended the acting, directing and cinematography in the series.

A possible sequel

Despite the significant success of the series, Nataliia Vorozhbyt repeatedly stated in interviews with Ukrainian media that she did not plan to make a second season because "this is a complete story". However, she does not entirely exclude such a possibility if she is provided with "comfortable conditions" for writing the script, allowing her to write it for a year and a half.

Nataliia Vorozhbyt also noted that there are many scenes that were not included into the final version of the TV series, and there is a possibility that TV channel "STB" will release an "extended director's cut" of the first season. An extended version of the series was broadcast on "STB" from August 31 to September 10, 2020.