The Unpaid Passenger

Georgy Daneliya is a world-renowned and cult director and screenwriter in the Soviet and post-Soviet space. After the release of many films, such as “Gentlemen of Fortune” and especially “Kin-dza-dza!”, the lines of the characters from which became quotes in Russia, Georgy Daneliya's fame became undeniable.
The films of Georgy Daneliya are sincere; just recall “I Walk Around Moscow,” sad, like “Tears Were Dropping,” tragicomic – like “Don't Grieve!,” insightful, piercing, and astonishing in their level of generalization – like “Kin-dza-dza!” and many, many others – have earned the love of the audience and numerous high awards from the most prestigious international and Russian film festivals.
In the 21st century, Georgy Daneliya wrote several bestselling books and effectively created the genre of short narrative stories, since he wrote them primarily as a film director, very much in the spirit of the currently fashionable autofiction. Without preaching, but with stunning wisdom accumulated over years of life and work in cinema, and an extraordinary sense of humor, the author speaks about his family, the time in which he lived and worked, friends, colleagues, and many world-famous people with whom fate brought him together on set and in everyday life. It’s no coincidence that friends called Georgy Daneliya “the wisest person of his time.” In general, read on; you won't get bored!