How Did The Odessa Steps Sequence Influence The Theory Of Montage

The ‘cult’ of the Second World War for the Soviet Union, Denise Youngblood writes, was heavily supported during the war years through the medium of film. Of the seventy films produced in the Soviet Union between 1941 and 1945, 70 percent were focused on subjects directly pertaining to war. This is an overwhelming percentage of war films when compared with the genre trends of other European film industries of this time. Youngblood notes, however, that these films often did not depict frontline battles, or even the homefront itself, as was the tendency of other nations’ films. The devastation of the Eastern Front was simply too enormous for ‘cheery Stalinist propaganda’ to hide, and Soviet audiences acutely aware of its demoralising reality.

Leni Riefenstahl, arguably the most renowned female film-maker of all time, and unarguably the most influential, created a number of films that were lauded across the world for technique, innovation and beauty. Leni first entered the world of film making as a dancer and an actress after finding acclaimed director Dr Arnold Fanck. She convinced Fanck of her acting ability and secured a role in one of his films, shortly afterwards she was commissioned by Fanck to make her own films. Under Dr Fanck’s wing she was taught how to go about creating her first feature and with his help she made the film ‘The Blue Light’ - a critical success. It was this film that attracted the attention of Adolf Hitler, who then invited her for a meeting with the intention of having her make what would be known as ‘the ultimate propaganda film’.

Looking back to the early development, documentary was called to be crucial in the phase of cinema. Historically, the film was conventionally commences in 1895, according to Erik Barnouw, the media historian, the Lumiere programs were the very well-liked in which for a span of two years they had just about a hundred operators working around

Soviet cinema has a significant contribution to the world’s film history. The years after the October Revolution in 1917 bring many economic difficulties and political changes to the newly formed USSR, which also affected film production. The nationalization of the film industry, Kuleshov experiments, and the support from the government mark some of the most important phases that influenced the progress and development of the Soviet film. Even though used as medium of propaganda, the cinema popularity

Enthusiasm was about Soviet miners in Eastern Ukraine and didn't have nearly the same impact as A Man with a Movie Camera, but it was similar in that didn't have any actors or straightforward narrative. There are some neat shots using double exposure and the film running backward, as well as editing that's at times much faster than what was common at the time. It was also the first sound film from Vertov.

Battleship Potemkin was a 1920’s Russian Propaganda film that was used to inspire change, and an uprising against the Tsarist government. During that time period in Russia there was an Revolution for change and to the eventual rise of the Soviet Union. During this time they were several different propaganda movies that some what inspired the Russian nation. Battleship Potemkin was one of those and it was one of the more famous ones. After watching this film myself I will break down the films propaganda ways. Near the beginning of the movie it showed how sailors daily lives were like under the Tsarist control.

In 2013, Russian film director and TV host, Fedor Bondarchuk released the first ever Russian film shot completely using IMAX technology. This film of his is Stalingrad. “STALINGRAD is an epic look at the battle that turned the tide of World War II. A band of determined

As one of the early controversial Soviet-American made films, Ninotchka (1939) was one of the first American movies which under a satirical cover and light romance, depicted the Joseph Stalin rule of Soviet Russia as being harsh and melancholy. Ernst Lubitsch’s comedy starring Greta Garbo as a stern Russian who falls in love, was deemed a great success in the United States and Western Europe whereas it was banned in the Soviet Union and its satellites. At the time, New York Times newspaper started their review blatantly stating “Stalin won’t like it” (Nugent, 1939). Premiering in 1939 in the United States, the film’s release was uncanny, a month after the outbreak of World War II in Europe. Lubitsch’s film Ninotchka utilizes Greta Garbo’s and

In conclusion the multiple differing techniques of filmography by Kubrick add a second layer of analytic meaning to the film. By analyzing

1. Sergei Eisenstein was one of the Soviet Union's greatest filmmakers who explored the various options offered by montage in both his films and in his critical writings. He sought to break up the illusion and make the audience think, compared to Hollywood's preferred mode of cutting film, which creates a smoothly flowing sequence that seeks to fabricate an entertaining illusion and keep the audience following the story. Dziga Vertov focused on using the new technology of the moving picture and expanding on its potential to record life as well as to become an instrument of class struggle. He believed that narrative was the enemy of Utopian cinema and his ideal was to portray "the ordinary mortal, filmed in life at his daily tasks."

Montage is a technique used when editing films originated back in the 1920’s. This method involves juxtaposing shots in a quick fashion. It compresses time thereby conveying information in a short duration of time. The Soviet montage theory in film emphasizes on the importance of editing when creating a film. Soviet filmmakers developed this theory, which revolves round the aspect of spatial matches; this technique incorporates discontinuity in graphic qualities and is consistently used in the Hollywood continuity system. It is often characterized by the use of temporal ellipses.

Soviet Russian filmmaker Sergei Eisenstein one of the most influential early masters of editing. Was different from many filmmakers who were worried with editing for clarity. Eisenstein was interested in the open possibilities of editing. Including, altering the pace of how rapidly one shot prospered another. Altering shots of different topics, so that viewers would comprehend a symbolic connection between them. Many of Eisenstein’s editing skills can be seen in “Battleship Potemkin” a 1925 film that became a universal hit. Thanks to Eisenstein contributing to editing important possibilities of film as a visual medium were acknowledged and explored by the first generation of filmmakers. Resulting in providing todays filmmakers with a far more

Once the 1917 revolution began, it was difficult to get access to film stock. As a result, filmmakers learned the art of filmmaking through experimentation with found footage, specifically by observing what would happen when combining this found footage together in various ways. The revolution resulted in an increased demand for political propaganda, and certain revolutionaries such as Vladimir Lenin (founder of the Russian Communist Party and leader of the Bolshevik Revolution) insisted that the best way to communicate revolutionary ideas was through film. In 1922 Lenin stated, “Of all the arts, for us the cinema is the most important” (Film Art 477). Lenin saw film as the ideal tool for education and thus encouraged the documentary as well as propaganda style of filmmaking. Eisenstein and Vertov detested the “bourgeois” continuity style of filmmaking and deemed it a false reality. Instead, they supported the Marxist system that focused on the conflict of political ideologies. Eisenstein was adamant about using cinema as a way to arouse emotions and urge civilians to support the revolution. Eisenstein used the technique of intellectual montage where he would combine images and then contrast them (Barrance 2015). This can be seen in his 1925 film Strike where he juxtaposes shots of someone slaughtering a cow with shots of military troops killing innocent workers, implying that innocent people are being executed in the same way as animals. In his 1928 film October, Christian emblems are cut together with shots of religious symbols from different cultures, which suggests that all religions are ultimately one and the same. The most famous montage filled Eisenstein film is his 1925 masterpiece

Vsevold Pudovkin was a Russian Soviet director, actor and screenwriter. He was on of the great innovators, he taught be the father of Soviet cinema Lev Kuleshov. He called to fight in World War 1 whilst studying engineering at Moscow. After escaping the Germans captivity he was 25 when returned to Russia he started studying Chemistry and physics but after seeing D.W. Griffiths film “ Intolerance” he was inspired to follow film. He applied to the Sate Institute of Cinematography at Moscow in 1919. However in 1919 film was still a very young art form and ideas and techniques that are commonplace today were just being developed at that time. Pudovkin most influential role in the world cinema was his theories on editing. He recorded that

Shortly after, the brothers Auguste and Louis Lumiere created a hand-cranked machine called the cinematographe, which could both capture pictures and project still frames in quick succession. The first motion picture studio, Nestor Motion Picture Company, was built, then one year later merged with Universal Film Company. By 1912, at least 15 independent studios located around the town were ready to shoot.The first color movie is housed at the Electric Theatre in 1912. In 1915, Hollywood began taking it’s famous shape: glamour, fame, and stardom, and thus the American dream is born! In 1915, a film that was supposedly the most important film of all time, D. W. Griffith's “The Birth of a Nation” uses brand new techniques such as story flashbacks, dramatic close ups, and cross cutting. Along with the start of Warner Brother Studios by four brothers (not Grauman) Film Director William Desmond Taylor is murdered at his home a few blocks away from his studio office in 1922. The crime is never solved. In 1922, Rin Tin Tin, the famous trained German Shepherd makes his first appearance (appears in