[2] Zvyagintsev claims that Krichman (an engineer by profession) learned his craft by reading American Cinematographer.

Krichman's cinematography is instrumental in creating the mood that is so imperative to Zvyagintsev's distinctively harrowing journeys of the soul.

Predominantly shooting with a crisp, wide lens, Krichman's work often juxtaposes the embittered faces of characters against the weather-worn yet picturesque Russian landscape.

There is a coldness to his work, yet it exudes an existential aura that feels like a nightmare slowly unravelling before your eyes.

Those were the things from his childhood that made him start his studies at what is now Moscow State University of Printing Arts.