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HISTORICAL OUTLINE The new state, the ", in English "Father Sergius", a religious film completed during the last weeks of the Russian Empire but not yet exhibited. It appeared on Soviet screens in 1918 . , the most glamorous star of Stalinist cinema.]] Beyond this, the government was principally able to fund only short, educational films, the most notorious of which were the Agitki - propaganda films intended to "agitate", or energize and enthuze, the masses to participate fully in approved Soviet activities, and deal effectively with those who remained in opposition to the new order. These short (often one small reel) films were often as not visual aids and accompaniments to live lectures and speeches, and were carried from city to city, town to town, village to village (along with the lecturers) to indoctrinate the entire countryside, even reaching areas where film had not been previously seen. Newsreels, as documentaries, were the other major form of earliest Soviet cinema. Dziga Vertov 's newsreel series ''Kino-Pravda'', the best known of these, lasted from 1922 to 1925 and had a propagandistic bent; Vertov used the series to promote Socialist Realism but also to experiment with cinema. Still, in 1921 , there was not one functioning cinema in Moscow until late in the year. Its rapid success, utilizing old Russian and imported feature films, jumpstarted the industry significantly, especially insofar as the government did not heavily or directly regulate what was shown, and by 1923 an additional 89 cinemas had opened. Despite extremely high taxation of ticket sales and film rentals, there was an incentive for individuals to begin making feature film product again - there were places to show the films - albeit they now had to conform their subject matter to a Soviet world view. In this context, the directors and writers who had remained in support of the objectives of Communism assumed quick dominance in the industry, as they were the ones who could most reliably and convincingly turn out films that would satisfy government censors. New talent joined the experienced remainder, and an artistic community assembled with the goal of defining "Soviet film" as something distinct and better from the output of "decadent capitalism". The leaders of this community viewed it essential to this goal to be free to experiment with the entire nature of film, a position which would result in several well-known creative efforts but would also result in an unforeseen counter-reaction by the increasingly solidifying administrators of the government-controlled society in which filmmakers were viewed as workers, not masters. Eisenstein 's '' Battleship Potemkin '' was released to wide acclaim in 1925 ; the film was heavily fictionalized and also propagandistic, preaching the party line about the virtues of the proletariat. The party leaders soon found it difficult to control directors' expression, partly because definitive understanding of a film's meaning was elusive. One of the most popular films released in 1930s was '' Circus ''. Notable films from 1940s include '' Aleksandr Nevsky '' and '' Ivan Grozny ''. In the late 1950s and early 1960s Soviet Cinema again flowered, beginning with films such as ''Ballada o Soldate'' '' Ballad Of A Soldier '' that won the 1961 BAFTA Award For Best Film and '' The Cranes Are Flying ''. ''Vysota (Height)'' is considered to be one of the best films of the 1950s (it also became the foundation of the Bard Movement ). 's '' Ballad Of A Soldier '' (1959).]]
CENSORSHIP After Stalin , Soviet filmmakers got a freer hand to film what they believed audiences wanted to see in their film's characters and stories. However, the industry remained a part of the government and if any material was found politically offensive or undesirable, it was either removed, edited or reshot; or it was shelved. In rare cases the filmmakers managed to convince the government of his innoccence and the film was released. The definition of "socialist realism" was liberalized to allow development of more human characters, but communism still had to remain uncriticized in its fundamentals. Additionally, the degree of relative artistic liberality could be changed from administration to administration. Oddities created by censorship include:
as Poruchik Rzhevsky in Eldar Ryazanov 's musical comedy '' Hussar Ballad '' (1962).]] 1950S In the beginning of the Cold War writers, still considered the primary auteurs, were all the more reluctant to take up script writing, and the early 50s saw only a handful of feature films completed during any year. The death of Stalin was a merciful relief to many, and all the more so was the official trashing of his public image as a benign and competent leader by Nikita Khruschev two years later. This latter event gave filmmakers the margin of comfort they needed to move away from the narrow formula stories of socialist realism, expand its boundaries, and begin work on a wider range of entertaining and artistic Soviet films. 1960S-70S The 1960s and 1970s saw the creation of many excellent films, many of which moulded Soviet and post-Soviet culture. They include:
Soviet directors were more concerned with art than with success (They were paid by the academy, and so money was not a critical issue). This contributed to the creation of a large number of more philosophical films. In keeping with Russian character, tragi-comedies were very popular. Soviet films tend to be rather culture-specific and are difficult for many foreigners to understand without having been exposed to the culture first. Animation was a respected genre, with many directors experimenting with technique. These decades were prominent in the production of the Ostern or Red Western. Prominent studios included:
and in the late 1980s: In the year of the 60th anniversary of the Soviet cinema ( 1979 ), on April 25 , by the ''Decision of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR '', the commemorative ''Day of the Soviet cinema'' was established. It was then celebrated in the USSR each year on August 27 , the day, on which V. I. Lenin signed a decree on the nationalisation of the cinema and photo industries of the country. RECENT HISTORY in the The collapse of the Soviet Union brought a virtual end to quality cinema (as well as literature) in Russia and the other republics. Very few films of note were created for over a decade. These included '' Oblako-ray (Cloud-Paradise)'' and '' Utomlennye Solntsem (Tired of the Sun; released in English as Burnt by the Sun)''. ) by Nikita Mikhalkov became very famous. The new Russia's cinema is more profit-oriented, with artistic needs taking a backseat to more immediate desires. Much low-quality action, comedy and pornography has been filmed. In shot. The film is 90 minutes long. The thematically similar films, '' The Return '' (''Vozvrashcheniye'') and '' The Road To Koktebel '', have also received critical acclaim in recent years. '' The Return '' (''Vozvrashcheniye'') won two prestigious awards at the Venice Film Festival . NOTABLE FILMMAKERS Early personalities in the development of the Russian cinema:
Later personalities:
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