Personal comments by Joan Borsten, producer of the series

The goal of this series is to preserve works of Soviet animation that are important not only for historians, but for generations of artists and lovers of visual art all over the world. The achievements of Russian artists buried in the totalitarianism of the zoth century and the Cold War should not be lost or torgotten.

Lenin considered cinema the most important art for promoting the Bolshevik party line. Animation in particular was a quick and easy way to explain to the general public who their new leaders considered good and bad. The stereotypes of capitalists and imperia-lists, developed by animation collectives in the mid 20s, were still being used in the 70s and 80s.

(see catalog for full program description)

This program screened as part of HAFF 2006

Showing in this program

Black and White

• Ivan Ivanov-Vano / Lev Amalrik
• Russia, 1933
• 2 min.

China in Flames

• Yuri Merkulov / Zenon Komisarenko / Nikolai Khodataev
• Russia, 1925
• 37 min.

Interplanetary Revolution

• Yuri Merkulov / Zenon Komisarenko / Nikolai Khodataev
• Russia, 1924
• 7 min.

Kino-Circus

• Lev Amalrik / Olga Khodataeva
• Russia, 1942
• 3 min.

Mister Twister

• Anatoly Karanovitch
• Russia, 1963
• 15 min.

Plus Electrification

• Ivan Aksenchuk
• Russia, 1972
• 8 min.

Prophets and Lessons

• Vyacheslav Kotonochkin
• Russia, 1967
• 9 min.

Shareholder

• Roman Davidov
• Russia, 1963
• 23 min.

Shooting Range

• Vladimir Tarasov
• Russia, 1979
• 19 min.

Songs of the Years of Fire

• Inessa Kovalevskaya
• Russia, 1971
• 16 min.

Soviet Toys

• Dziga Vertov
• Soviet Union, 1924
• 10 min.

The Millionaire

• Vladimir Bordzilovsky / Yuri Prytkov
• Russia, 1963
• 9 min.

Time Forward

• Vladimir Tarasov
• Russia, 1977
• 17 min.

War Newsreel 4: What Hitler Wants

• Valentina Brumberg / Ivan Ivanov-Vano / Olga Khodataeva / Zinaida Brumberg / Alexander Ivanov
• Russia, 1941
• 2 min.