What is the best thing that I love about my work? The fact that video editing and production in general is at something of a turning point. On the one hand – the volume of video production today is staggering. On the other hand – the volume of automated tools is increasing and I would be inspired by the idea that more routine work will be replaced and more purely creative work will be done. Because through editing you can introduce your vision of style, sense of tact and humour to the viewer.

What is my idea of happiness? Happiness is not a constant, it’s always changing and that’s a very good thing. Today it is 2023, for me it is happiness that I am alive and I am with my loved ones, I can do my creative tasks while earning some money. Money is always needed more, it is an integral part of today’s life and its quality, that’s why I want to share it and receive it, that’s why learning the mechanisms of business and economics is an integral part of a happy life. All these dry things, should become my friends and everyone will be happy.

What is my greatest fear? Absolutely elementary things – illness, illness of loved ones, death, death of loved ones. But today we live in relatively advanced times and a lot of health problems are solved relatively well. I hope that the future will be better and we will live for some time healthier and happier.

What is the trait that I most deplore in myself? I guess I’m too modest and I’m afraid of little things. For example, I’m afraid of street dogs. In my childhood I was badly bitten by a Caucasian sheepdog, which usually guards the herd, a big and serious dog clung to my arm and the moment before that tried to cling to my mum’s face. It was very creepy and I still don’t like dogs running around in the street. But at the same time I love dogs, their temperament and optimistic mood. Especially in countries where animals are treated well, for example in Turkey, where they are never touched and are practically non-aggressive. In Russia a street dog is battered and angry because they are beaten. I also don’t like the fact that I am easily distracted from the topic of a conversation or a question.

Which living persons in my profession do i most admire? Joshua Homme – it’s hard to quickly describe why I admire the musician, but it just so happens that in difficult periods this music helps me, it seems to be somehow endless and different, something like life. Andreas Treske is a wonderful author and media artist. But I would classify him more as a contemporary philosopher in the field of media. He has amazing and deep texts that immerse you in analysing video as a separate phenomenon, but he also has good technical knowledge in this field. He refers to a lot of philosophers and thinkers in these fields, which gives different perspectives on the development of media and technology. In general if you are into video – this is a very right and necessary author. Also of course I love many of the editors – Walter Murch, Margaret Sixel, Jonathan Amos, Paul Machliss.

What is my greatest extravagance? I love everything that has to do with extravagance, I would like to be
surrounded only by extravagant things and extravagant people. On the other hand, everyone at the same time wants order in life.

What should I do?

On what occasion would I lie? I dream of eliminating lying from the daily formula of life, lying is basically a bad habit that everyone should get rid of. I don’t like to offend people and prefer to praise them to develop their weaknesses. It can make them better in the long run and that way I don’t have to lie about anything. I wouldn’t call it lying, but deferred truth. The truth should always be out in the open.

What is the thing that I dislike the most in my work? If we take editing in its purest form – it is often limited primarily by the operator’s capabilities and experience. As a rule, if we are not talking about cinema – it is a meagre quality of shooting, fast and low-quality. So it is nowadays properly supplemented by your own shooting skills and ability to master graphic editors and some animator like After Effects. It stresses you out, but it actually frees you up and makes you a more nimble editor who can gradually become a full fledged director. That’s what I’m going for now – I want to become a full time director and make quality films that I myself would want to see. It’s a big and exciting path.

When and where was I the happiest, in my work? When I could make directorial or production decisions and it helped the project. I also love it when I can have an easy and fun job while still being professional. But often I get one thing right, either being professional or being sociable. I want to be easy and pleasant to talk to, but I want to be seen as a professional who is not only good at what he does, but also has a clear understanding of the work of the rest of the team.

If I could, what would I change about myself? I would like to make myself more confident and less distracted. I would like to have a little more reserve of attentiveness when communicating with other people, I would like to be an energy exchanger, i.e. to give and receive positive energy. I am sure this is
the best cure for all the troubles of life.

What is my greatest achievement in work? Well just realising that editing in pure video is too limited and can’t really unleash creativity, even though it is infinite in many related fields. Someone can find a whole infinite creative world in it and that’s great. From the straightforward achievements I would mention the Italian award for editing the film “Poor People” directed by Lolita Naranovic. We also made 3 more films with this team and put them together in an anthology that is now in distribution in Russia. I also run a small editing school and can only give a small number of orders for now, but I think I’m ready to expand.

Where would I most like to live? This is a big and complex issue, as we were unlucky to be born in a
dramatic and difficult country with a complex character – Russia. There are many clouds hanging over us today, which were there before. But today they are raining bloody rain on us. We can’t complain because nobody understands us. Some say that we are directly responsible for the war, others on the contrary praise us together with our government.

What is my most treasured possession? People’s attitudes towards you and your attitude towards them, the most important currency and stock to invest in at all times. But in a way that you don’t burn out. I cherish my knowledge, skills and traits that I have not lost and hopefully have consolidated properly to take advantage of when realising, for example, films.

What is my most marked characteristic? Perhaps off-the-wall humour, short format. I.e. I’m basically
small-talking and quiet, but occasionally something brings me a cool idea for such a succinct and sometimes imaginative description of a large and complex conversation. In short, the usual short and
relatable joke.

What is my most inspirational location, in my city? I want to find this “my” city. I can think of my hometown, but I wouldn’t call it my city, as it has turned out to be a stranger to me. Maybe I’m not good enough for it. I liked the idea that around the ruin, dirt and sullen people, there were amazing places that were once decorated by the Italian Bernardazzi brothers, who were called by the Russian Tsar. They lived there all their lives and decorated it with stone they had quarried from a nearby volcanic mountain. They
made some secluded places that I liked and at the same time the masses of people did not like them, so we developed a kind of symbiosis there. This is the city of Pyatigorsk, which is in the south of Russia. Relatively recently it was a Caucasian land, but Russia had to spill a lot of blood, both its own and that of others, in order to regain possession of a land it does not know what to do with.

What is my favorite place to eat and drink, in my city? Relatively recently, Gyro has appeared there, which is meat from a spit in a pita bun with various fillings and yoghurt sauce. Pyatigorsk is also famous for its ice cream, which can be confidently called the most delicious in the whole country. Taking into account that this is a Caucasian region, traditionally there is a very tasty Russian barbecue called “shashlyk” almost everywhere. Caucasian cuisine is in principle very tasty, for example, among the Kabardian cuisine (Kabardino-Balkar Republic) I would single out Gozleme and Dzhedlebzhe. For these dishes you should go to Nalchik, the capital of this republic annexed to Russia. If you think about it, I can send you detailed instructions and guides in a private message.

What books influenced my life and how? Foster Wallace is an extremely interesting writer, his different works influenced me in different ways. I have read relatively few books, the school programme and Russian education is quite poor and effectively discourages reading and learning about, for example, history. I’m partly grateful to have been given such a big pause. I think I’m at the perfect age to read more and I have enough life experience to understand well what an author is trying to say. Unfortunately time is short, I need to do something about that! I love Lovecraft’s atmosphere, I was struck by Bukowski’s grimy realism. I love journalistic work, for example the very hilarious Jeremy Clarkson. He actually has a lot in common with Sergei Dovlatov. They both have a knack of delivering slightly smutty but sparkling anecdotes in good time. Unfortunately, I’m more obsessed with films and directors.

You Only Die Once. What music would I listen on my last day? I had a relatively recent experience where you thought you were about to die – we were beginning to be carried out to the open sea, and so death was not expected to be quick and painful. You don’t think of any music. It’s a rotten situation devoid of any romanticism. But before that, I would have answered Queens of the stone age, with their album …Like Clockwork.

Who is my hero or heroine in fiction? I guess I’m still looking for him.

Who are my heroes and heroines in real life? Joshua Homme of Queens of the Stone Age, and all the Ukrainian people.

Which movie would i recommend to see once in a lifetime? Earlier I would have called “Go and See” as an inoculation against fascism, but unfortunately, people tend to see completely different and diametrically opposite meanings in films. That’s why such films for me have entered the category of just heavy films, I am convinced that a person should strive for light in every possible way. One should get a peaceful pleasure and positive excitement from cinema. That’s why Back to the Future, The Fifth Element, Men in
Black, The Big Lebowski, Babe and so on are films that can and should be seen more than once in a lifetime.

What role play stories in my life and work? Today there are fewer of them, I would like to apply these plots in the realisation of films.

What do the words ‘You are the storyteller of your own life’ to me? This is an absolute truth that is hard to argue with. I would only add the word “must”, “you – must be the storyteller of your own life”.

Who is my greatest fan, sponsor, partner in crime? This is my spouse. She is a source of endless inspiration, optimism and excitement.

Which people or companies would I like to work with? It would be great to work in any format with any people connected with Queens of the Stone Age in one way or another. The most realistic option would be the “court” director of the band’s music videos – Liam Lynch. And musician Alain Johannes, who used to work with the band. It would also be fun to make a video clip with Jason Schwartzman!

What project am I looking forward to work on? In the short term, at least one short film. Then a feature film. Then a series of feature films around the QOTSA music universe.

Where can you see me or my work? I’ve been doing video editing for the last 10 years, now I’m trying to
rebuild the rails to filming and directing, so the showreel so far is just a video editor for film, clip, TV and of course YouTube – https://youtu.be/JMRlrWKgWuY. Now I would like to see someone guest posting on instagram, where I collect my latest work – instagram.com/sskiba_paradiso. Would be happy to see any activity there. Also at Linkedin – https://www.linkedin.com/in/stas-skiba-99172833/ I use Telegram for prompt correspondence, but am willing to jump to any other social network, no problem. Oh, by the way, I collect my montages of my favourite films on YouTube. Don’t be scared! https://youtube.com/@yourDM

What do the words “Passion Never Retires” mean to me? That’s great, I couldn’t have said it better myself.

Which creative professionals should Peter invite to tell their story? Oh, I’m generally forming a wonderful network of people in Linkedin that I’ve been dreaming of for a long time. More often than not, it’s people from film, or people who are doing something in the media environment. I don’t even know who to start with. There is for example the talented videographer, excellent storyteller and documentary filmmaker Fatih Ugur, who lives in marvellous and beautiful Turkey – https://www.linkedin.com/in/fatihugur/. There is also a great professional multimedia designer Mohamed Ashraf – https://www.linkedin.com/in/mohamed-ashraf-3aa769213/. There is also a very interesting scriptwriter Lee Andrew Taylor https://www.linkedin.com/in/lee-andrew-taylor-69b31611/ hope to work with him on his stories.
I would like to know more about the others, but for now we are looking at each other 🙂

How can you contact me?
I have a good old email veryg0o0dmail@gmail.com
Linkedin https://www.linkedin.com/in/stas-skiba-99172833/
https://instagram.com/sskiba_paradiso