Spets
Encyclopedia
Spets was a seven-part Russian
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...

 TV series that aired on Ussuriysk T.V. It chronicled the day-to-day activities of a group of gangsters in a Far East
Far East
The Far East is an English term mostly describing East Asia and Southeast Asia, with South Asia sometimes also included for economic and cultural reasons.The term came into use in European geopolitical discourse in the 19th century,...

 Russian town. The shows writer, producer, director and star, Vitali Dyomochka
Vitali Dyomochka
Vitali Dyomochka, also known as Bondar, is a Russian mobster and crime boss in the Vladivostok area. He is notable for writing, directing, producing and starring in a short TV series called Spets, which aimed to show viewers the reality of the Russian underworld.-Biography:Although Dyomochka was an...

, was a real life Russian mafia
Russian Mafia
The Russian Mafia is a name applied to organized crime syndicates in Russia and Ukraine. The mafia in various countries take the name of the country, as for example the Ukrainian mafia....

 boss and the head of a Podstava
Podstava
Podstava is a type of blackmail originating in Russia. It involves criminals setting up car accidents and then demanding huge sums of money for repairs from other drivers, whom they hold to blame. In the Russian Far East the crime is particularly popular, since many imported Japanese cars arrive...

group. A lot of the events depicted on the show were based on Dyomochka's real life experiences, such as an incident where a blackmail victim turns out to be a judge.

The gangsters were played by their real-life counterparts and performed their own stunts. Over the course of the series, a nightclub and casino were heavily damaged. Also during the series ten gang members were arrested and another was murdered by rivals. Local police showed opposition to the show and refused to play themselves, and questioned and investigated Dyomochka several times over the production of the show.

When the series finished production in 2003, it became a hit on local television, getting around 100% ratings. However, the show also divided viewers, and raised controversy if the mafia should be allowed to profit from their crimes in this way. Dymochka, however, has repeatedly insisted he has not made money from the show, and rather did it to show people the real side of organized crime.
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