RTVI presenter Lisa Kaimin talks about rich Russians and dashing guys from the 90s in the USA

Lisa Kaymin. Photo courtesy of RTVI

In June this year, the long-awaited restart of the main Russian-language international TV channel RTVI will take place. Lisa Kaymin - the face of the channel, leading the new show “Lisa iz Soho”. No one has ever seen such a strict Kaimin. New York's socialite will look into the most inaccessible houses of Russian Americans, show the viewer how the rich and famous live and have fun. About why Kajmin decided on this project and what tragedy she experienced just recently, Lisa will tell herself today.

In New York, I was already 17 years old, but I really understood what city I got to, only 10 years after the move. Since I came to America to "marry", all this time I have wound up a family nest. And after 10 years I got divorced, and my friends invited me to a nightclub in Manhattan to support me. I first saw the "lights of the big city." It was, in a good sense of the word, a culture shock. "And Ostap suffered ...". Since then, I am a fan and an active participant in New York social life.

By the way, it was in the first year that I realized that I could not live without work. No matter how much I love home comfort, such a life is mortal boredom without realization and development in the professional sphere. If I had not got on television here, I would probably have returned to Russia.

I can not be called a crazy workaholic. My life is balanced and divided into personal and working roughly equally. But I love the profession that I do. I found myself in it. And even entering the acting course of the St. Petersburg Academy of Theatrical Art, I saw myself not on the stage, but on the TV screen.

In fact, this university appeared in my life completely by accident. It was obvious that I should get a higher education. I come from a family of St. Petersburg intelligentsia, and this, you see, is obligatory. I was looking for myself, studying ballet, music, Indian dancing, fencing... But I came to the exams at the theater with a friend, for company. I looked gorgeous - war paint, nails the color of hell, black, the color of my hair, clothes in the Gothic style... She was still a beauty! I read the fable “The Crow and the Fox,” the prose of Maupassant and the poems of my beloved Sasha Cherny. I don’t know what impressed the admissions committee more: my appearance or my talent, but they accepted me. And my friend too, by the way.

I still really love the stage and sometimes act. But the acting profession is a hobby for me. I was never ready to devote myself to serving in the theater. This work requires too many sacrifices from a person - complete immersion, both emotional and physical. This is not for me.

Television is a more modern art form, it is more rational, leaves space for life and, moreover, demands it. If, while working in the news, you constantly live this and let everything you talk about on the screen pass through you, then very quickly you will simply go crazy. Television makes it possible not only to inhale, but also to exhale. This is a very important condition - you need to learn to exhale, otherwise you won’t last long.

A new project that I do - it is different. He is creative, exciting and requires more emotional involvement and open manifestation of his own personal qualities. When I was offered to get out of the chair of the news host and try myself in a new format, I assumed that my role would be that I would work again as a “face”. I will be put on a point, I will speak a learned text, make certain movements. But everything turned out to be completely different! In this program I am not just a performer, I was given the confidence to take part in the creation of a product. I fully joined the team of like-minded professionals, each of us contributes to the project. It happens, we argue among ourselves, we prove our vision, but it is more interesting for me to observe how the truth is born.

My heroes are immigrants who have realized their American dream. They are successful and rich. Sometimes very rich! These people are completely different. And each program is an amazing and unique story.

I would hardly have encountered many of my heroes in everyday life. For example, I really thought that dashing 90's guys only exist in books and movies. And no! Among my friends there are no people with the headdress “Thank you parents for giving me life” for the whole chest or with ecstasy telling about how easy it is to shoot a leg from a “trauma”.

Naturally, not all of these people are cute to me. But the harder it is to find their charm and zest in them, the more interesting to me. In addition, there is one moment that unites me with my heroes. We survived the emigration. The path of a person who has changed a country cannot be boring and trivial.

But in general, I can not help wondering how much Russia is left in some of the heroes.

This, as I said, people are wealthy, they, most often deservedly, boast about their way of life and what they can afford with such money. And to the question, what is most important for them in America, is the answer - freedom! But, in fact, many "in Russian" are not free - from prejudice, Ponte, the desire to impress others. It will not even occur to a free person. In New York, people are not friends depending on the social steps. People are going to companies, and nobody cares if you have money or not. Billionaire can be friends with the waiter. There is no need to paint and put on heels to throw garbage. Here, no one judges or discusses anyone, and other people do not need to live for the sake of opinions about you. America really likes me.

Lisa Kaymin. Photo courtesy of RTVI

And I am glad that among my heroes there are those who not only made good money in America, but also found real value - freedom. These are unique people - dog clothing designer Yana Sirkin, the family of jewelry magnates Olga and Robert Keith, world-famous costume designer Shelley Komarov - they do not pretend to be anything, they are who they are - open, cheerful, in love with their work. Even though their standard of living is an incredible dream for many, they understand that money is nice, but it doesn’t make us happy. You can't buy close relationships, love, cheerfulness. I say banal things, but that doesn't make them any less true.

Each story that our program viewers will see will be unique, unexpected. People may fall in love with our hero or begin to envy him, but they will not be indifferent!

I can not compare what I like more - work in the news or on a new project. These are completely different things. The opportunity to try yourself in another genre is priceless! I like the fact that there is a lot of me in the program - the way I am. I love provocative things, I love to dress and appear in different ways. Plus I am very attracted to the opportunity to be funny in this project. And I do it with great pleasure! I love it! In this part of my charm.

The period when we started shooting a new project was very difficult for me. Shortly before this, a plane crash of a Defense Ministry plane took place in Russia, in which my brother Anton Gubankov was killed.

But you understand, a person experiencing a tragedy does not always become hysterical and tear out his hair. It was always important to me that my brother was proud of me. He was an example for me, and I tried to prove to him that I was worthy of doing journalism. This feeling does not allow you to stand still, but gives you the strength to move somewhere and grow. Anton knew that I was invited to lead a new project and was very happy for me. So I did and am doing this, including in memory of him. I feel a huge responsibility both to him and to my mother, who stayed with me in New York after the incident. We help each other to be strong. The external expression of emotions does not reflect what is happening inside you. There are different floors of the soul. On one there is pain, tears and tragedy. On the other - sincere joy and fun. In our lives we have to run from floor to floor all the time.

Mom is now with me and live in Russia will not return. I think this is correct. It is easier for both of us. That she will move, Anton and I decided during his lifetime. He really wanted this. It seemed to him that here, in America, she was in much greater safety in terms of health and timely assistance.

My mother and I are very close friends, she is friends with my friends. With her, I can easily go to clubs and parties. Now I try to distract her as much as possible and instill the idea that for the sake of the memory of Anton we have no right to indulge in despondency.

Read also on ForumDaily:

By the fireplace with Topaller: RTVI launches new project

Journalist Tikhon Dzyadko - why he left for America and why he wants to return to Russia

Russian media in America in the faces: Katerina Kotrikadze

RTVi presenter Vladimir Lensky: News is dragging like a whirlpool

Lead of RTVi Lisa Kaymin - about the craziness of the news editorial and about her beloved New York

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