“Because of the war in Ukraine I declined the invitation to the St. Petersburg International Festival”, says the 92-year-old director, in competition at the Lido ‘A Couple’, his first fiction film dedicated to the author of ‘War and Peace’ and his broken relationship with his wife “I refused to present my film in Russia about the great Russian writer Lev Tolstoy after the Russians invaded Ukraine.” This was stated by the American director Frederick Wiseman, 92 years old, master of international documentary, awarded for his career with the Golden Lion and the Oscar, presenting at the Venice Film Festival “Un couple” (2022), his first fiction film dedicated to the author of “War and Peace” and “Anna Karenina” to his conflicted relationship with his wife Sofia. “I was invited to present the film at the St. Petersburg International Festival – explained Wiseman at a press conference – but I refused because of the war in Ukraine. For me it was a painful but necessary decision. Since the organizers of the Festival did not expressed their opposition to the war and the Russian government, I declined the invitation, indeed I refused “, added Wiseman.