DetectiveFEST

The International Festival of Detective Films and Television Programs on Law Enforcement Themes, commonly known as DetectiveFEST, has been held in Moscow, Russia every spring since 1999.

DetectiveFEST was conceived and launched by the Russian film producer Yuri Mityushin. Before starting a career in the film industry, Mityushin had served in the Russian Armed Forces for 22 years and in the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation for about 5 years.

The inaugural festival was held in April 1999 under the name Law Enforcement and Society. Its program featured almost 500 films and television projects produced by 137 companies from former Soviet republics. In 2001, the festival was renamed Law and Society. It received its current name, DetectiveFEST, in 2005, and “Law and Society” is now the festival’s slogan.

DetectiveFEST is organized by Mityushin’s production company Detective. It is supported by the Producers and Organizers Guild of the Union of Cinematographers of the Russian Federation, the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation, and the Moscow Regional Department of the International Police Association.

DetectiveFEST hosts a competition for full-length and short feature films, documentaries, animated films, TV series and TV spots on detective, law-enforcement, military and anti-terrorist themes. The competition categories are divided into two main groups: genre categories and thematic categories.

There are six main genre categories: Full-length Feature Film, Short Feature Film, Animation Film, TV Series, Hero Actor Award, and Anti-hero Actor Award. Thematic categories include Terrorism is a Threat to Peace, Blood Money, Crime and Punishment, World Without Drugs, Civil Society, Ward and Peace, Road Safety, Environmental Offenses, Criminal Practice, and more. Winners in all categories are selected by a professional jury.

A lot of popular Russian TV series about law enforcement have been awarded at DetectiveFEST. They include Streets of Broken Lights (the winner of the first festival Grand Prix), Kamenskaya, Turetsky March, and Maroseyka 12.

Alongside the official selection and out-of-competition screenings, the festival program includes presentations of new film and television project, workshops and seminars conducted by leading film, television and advertising industry professionals, exhibitions, and other events and activities for filmmakers and film enthusiasts alike.