Trivia / The Mirror (1975)

• Acting for Two: Margarita Terekhova and Ignat Daniltsev. See Doppelgänger on the film page for why.
• The Danza: Ignat Daniltsev as Ignat.
• Production Posse: As with all of Tarkovsky's films from Andrei Rublev to Stalker (1979), the cast features Anatoly Solonitsyn (as a doctor) and Nikolai Grinko (as Maria's boss at the printing house). It also features poetry by Tarkovsky's father, Arseny Tarkovsky, read by the author.
• What Could Have Been: Bibi Andersson and Alla Demidova were considered for the role of Maria/Natalia.
• Write What You Know: The scenes of Alexei's childhood are based on his reminiscences of growing up mostly raised by his mother while his father was absent, being evacuated from Moscow to Yurievets during World War II, and being conscripted into the military.
• Write Who You Know: Many of the characters are based on people Tarkovsky knew, especially Maria, who is based on his mother, Maria Vishnyakova, who had to raise young Andrei and his sister Marina on her own after her husband left the family in 1937 (as seen in the film, he returned after being invalided out of the military in 1943). To reinforce the connection, the elderly Maria is played by her real-life counterpart.

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