Alex Gilbert

Alex Gilbert
Alex Gilbert in 2018
Born Gusovskoi Alexander Viktorovich
(Changed to Sasha Alexander Gilbert)

(1992-04-01) 1 April 1992
Arkhangelsk, Russia
Nationality New Zealand
Years active 2011–present
Known for I'm Adopted
Adoption Awareness
'My Russian Side'
Home town Whangarei, New Zealand
Website alexgilbert.co.nz and imadopted.org

Alex Gilbert (Russian: Саша Александр "Алекс" Гилберт; (full name Sasha Alexander Gilbert; 1 April 1992) is a New Zealand adoption advocate. He is known as the founder of the adoption project I'm Adopted[1][2][3][4][5] which he established in 2015.

Gilbert was born Gusovskoi Alexander Viktorovich[6] in Arkhangelsk, Russia, placed in the local orphanage for the first two years of his life until he was adopted by his New Zealand parents in 1994.

In 2013 Gilbert started searching for his birth parents in Russia who he had no connection with. He managed to find his birth mother and then eventually his birth father, who didn't know about his existence until he contacted him in 2013. The story of his search for, and finally meeting, his birth parents in Russia first aired on New Zealand TV in 2014.[7][8][9]

In 2015 Gilbert created the adoption project I'm Adopted which has helped others adopted around the world share their stories and find their birth parents. The project gives adopted people who are on the search for their birth parents or family the right to search for their lost connections.[10][11][12][13]

Gilbert has made several appearances in various television shows and documentaries which focus on the subject of international adoption. He has also written two books, My Russian Side in 2014 and his autobiography I'm Adopted which he independently released at the beginning of 2018.[14][15]Outside of I'm Adopted, since 2012 Gilbert has been working professionally in media and television.

Early life

Alex Gilbert was born Gusovskoi Alexander Viktorovich on 1 April 1992 in Arkhangelsk, Russia, to Tatiana Gusovskaia and Mihail Kovkov.[16] Gilbert was placed in a Russian orphanage in Arkhangelsk by his mother Tatiana after he was born. His birth mother had also been placed in an orphanage when she was a child.[17] His birth father Mihail did not know of his existence until 2013 after hearing through a series of online messages that Gilbert was searching for him. His birth father's name was fabricated on Gilbert's birth certificate and adoption papers.

In 1994, Gilbert and his brother Andrei were adopted by his New Zealand parents Mark and Janice Gilbert. His name was legally changed to Sasha Alexander Gilbert in 1994, instead of his name at birth was Guzovskoi Alexander Viktorovich.[18] He grew up in Whangarei, New Zealand and lived there until he was 18 years. He moved to Auckland at the beginning of 2011 to study and work in television.[19]

Career

2013–2014: My Russian Side

After an unsuccessful attempt in 2009, Gilbert decided to start searching again for his birth parents at the beginning of 2013.[20] He used Russian social networking websites and eventually located them. In November 2013, Gilbert travelled to Russia to meet them for the first time. Gilbert first arrived in Moscow and then the next morning he was driven for six hours to see his birth mother who was living in Rybinsk. The following day, Gilbert flew to Saint Petersburg to meet his birth father Mihail for the first time. This trip, and his meetings with his birth parents, was documented and filmed for New Zealand's TV One's Sunday current affairs program. The story aired at the beginning of 2014.[8][21]

He wrote and released his autobiographical book My Russian Side in 2014 along with an autobiographical documentary film, with the same title, that he wrote, directed and is featured in. It includes in-depth interviews, the background story of his November 2013 journey to Russia, and his meetings with his birth parents.[22][23]

2015–present: I'm Adopted project

In July 2015 Gilbert established the I'm Adopted project,[4][24][25][26] for other adopted people to share their stories.[27][28][29] The project is a platform that helps adoptees around the world to share their personal experiences with adoption through social media.[30][31] The project also works to bring adoptees together to meet through meet ups and events.[32][33] The project is currently available in English, Russian[34] and Spanish with the help of contributors and translators worldwide. At the end of 2015, Gilbert appeared on Russian 1TV station's Let them Talk programme highlighting the project as well as his adopting New Zealand parents meeting his Russian biological parents for the first time.[35][36] Since the project began in 2015, it has shared over 300 written or videotaped stories from adoptees around the world. Gilbert also helps organise support groups and meet ups with the I'm Adopted project for adopted people.[6] The project was registered as a New Zealand charitable trust at the beginning of 2017.[1][37]

Gilbert meeting Anna Kuznetsova (The Children's Rights Commissioner for the President of the Russian Federation) Moscow, Russia October 2017
Gilbert in 2016

In January 2017, New Zealand's Ministry of Social Development announced that it would no longer be reviewing the Bilateral Agreement for adoption between New Zealand and Russia.[38] Inter-country adoptions from Russia to New Zealand had been put on hold since October 2013. Gilbert understood that these are the views of each country and decision to suspend all adoption ties regarding Russian children should be respected after negotiations broke down between the two countries. However Gilbert expressed his disappointment over the decision.[39]

In February 2017, an event was held at the New Zealand Parliament to help raise awareness for I'm Adopted and its projects. Gilbert was one of the key speakers along with the newly appointed I'm Adopted ambassadors Alex Kuch and Sasha Kelly who are also adopted themselves.[1] Wendy Hawke, director of Inter-Country Adoption NZ also spoke at the event. The event was hosted by former New Zealand National MP Todd Barclay.[40]

In October 2017 Gilbert went to Russia to revisit his orphanage in Arkhangelsk.[41][42] This was the first time Gilbert revisited the orphanage since he left in 1994.[43][10][11][44] Gilbert also talked with various adopted teenagers and parents in Moscow for a charity that focuses on adoption called Арифметика добра.[45][46][47][48] Gilbert also met Anna Kuznetsova, Children's Rights Commissioner for the President of the Russian Federation which was also headquartered in Moscow.[12][49][50][13][51]

Gilbert shared a video on his experience of him meeting his birth father for the first time on the social news website Reddit in November 2017. Since it was posted, the video reached over 250,000 views within three days. The video was also posted on the LADbible Facebook page which gained over 1.4 million views overnight.[52][53][54][55][56] In January 2018, Gilbert appeared as one of the main subjects in a Russian documentary, The Man from Nowhere[57] «Человек из ниоткуда» which was Directed by Russian Documentary maker Katerina Gordeeva.[58] The documentary is a part of a film series that was released for the 'Change one Life' charity in Russia. Alex was interviewed for the Documentary when he was in Russia in October 2017. It was filmed in Moscow and Arkhangelsk, with him being interviewed and with the documentary showing footage of him revisiting his orphanage in Arkhangelsk.[59][60]

In July 2018, Gilbert spoke via video at the ICAR6 (International Conference on Adoption Research 6) conference in Montreal, Canada as well as hosting the first I'm Adopted overseas meet up in Galway, Ireland on the 1st of August 2018.[61][62][63][64]

2018: I'm Adopted and orphanage supplies initiative

In the beginning of 2018, Gilbert released his second book and autobiography I'm Adopted independently. A full length interview that was based on the book was released in late June with Meg Andrews. Gilbert started an initiative collecting supplies for his orphanage in Arkhangelsk, Russia in October 2018.[65]

2011–present: Television career

As well as being an adoption advocate, Gilbert works as a TV production assistant and camera operator. In his autobiography I'm Adopted, Gilbert talked being interested in television and film ever since his childhood. Gilbert purchased his own camera in 2005 after saving up enough money for one with his paper run job that he had when he was 13 years old.[66]

He went to South Seas Film and Television School in 2011 to study film and television. Gilbert began his professional television career at the start of 2012, working for New Zealand's lifestyle channel Choice TV until the end of 2015. Before this, Gilbert worked as a volunteer assistant when he was in High School for a local television network in his home town, Whangarei. He also was a boom operator for an independent New Zealand film in 2009.[67][68] He also did work experience in 2011 during his year of film and television study for New Zealand's children television morning show What Now.

Gilbert has previously worked on various films and television shows inside New Zealand and other countries including South Korea, the United States and several countries in Europe.[69] He is currently an assistant producer for the TV show The Cafe on New Zealand's Three channel and is also an editor and content producer for Stripe Media.[70]

Personal life

Gilbert spends a lot of his own time with photography outside of work as well as filming. He regularly publishes photos of his work to his social media.

Family

After Gilbert was adopted from his Orphanage in Arkhangelsk, Russia in 1994, his New Zealand parents Mark and Janice Gilbert then raised him and his brother Andrei Gilbert in Whangarei, New Zealand. Janice Gilbert was raised in Invercargill, New Zealand and Mark Gilbert was raised in Whangarei, New Zealand. They both met in the early 1980s in London to then marrying in 1990.[71] Gilbert moved out of his family home at the end of 2010 to then study Film and Television in Auckland at South Seas Film and Television School.

Relationship to his biological parents

Gilbert has mentioned about the relationship with both his biological parents in Russia. In his 2018 autobiography I'm Adopted he mentioned that he finds it difficult to keep in contact with his birth mother Tatiana Gusovskaia, due to her alcohol abuse, but keeps in constant contact with his birth father Mihail Kovkov.[72][73] His birth parents were both in a short relationship in the early 1990s. When Tatiana fell she was pregnant with Gilbert in late 1991, she did not tell Mihail and stopped all communication with him. She then left Arkhangelsk, Russia, after Alex was born. Both his birth parents saw each other again in 2015. The first time since the early 1990s. Both Tatiana and Mihail also met with Gilbert's New Zealand parents in 2015 for the first time.[74] Gilbert went back to revisit both his birth mother and father in July 2018.[75][76][77]

Relationships

Gilbert was in a previous relationship with a Russian girlfriend from 2015 until mid 2017.[78][79]

Books

  • My Russian Side (Моя Русская семья) (2014) ISBN 978-1-32-002582-9[14]
  • I'm Adopted (История моего усыновления) (2018)[80][81][82][83] ISBN 978-1983519000[15]

Filmography

(Titles that are related to his adoption advocacy)

Television / Films
Year Title Title in Russian Role Notes
2014 Sunday Himself
2014 My Russian Side Himself Documentary film
2015 Anatomy of the Day[84] «Анатомия дня» Himself
2015 Let Them Talk «Пусть говорят» Himself Season 15, Episode 68[85]
2015 Sunday Himself
2016 Breakfast[2] Himself
2017 TV Rain Himself TV Special about adoption
2018 The Man from Nowhere[59][86][58] «Человек из ниоткуда»[87] Himself Russian documentary,
Directed by Katerina Gordeeva
2018 I'm Adopted - The Interview w/ Meg Andrews[88] «История моего усыновления Интервью

с Мэг Эндрюс»

Himself

Others (Media career not related to his adoption advocacy)

Television / Films
Year Title Notes
2011 What Now Television Assistant
2012 Bucket Wish TV series. Camera operator (2 episodes)
2012 Emperor Camera intern
2014 Catch and Cook! TV series. Producer
Camera operator (5 episodes)
The Nutters Club TV series. Camera operator (1 episode)
Cook the Books TV series. Production assistant
Camera operator
2015 100 Day Bach TV series. Camera operator
2016 - 2018 The Cafe
2018 100 Day Renovation TV series. Camera operator

References

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