1. The Russian Revolution Reading  Wikipedia: “The Russian Revolution” (This is a fairly reliable overview of a complex stretch of history) Trotsky: Preface to the History of the Russian Revolution Zabel: “Brief Remarks on the Russian Revolution and Esfir Shub’s, The Fall of the Romanov Dynasty” Discussion  Introduce yourself on the Discussions page of our Blackboard Site Make your entries for Session 1 on the Discussions page of our Blackboard Site Film The Fall of the Romanov Dynasty (Esfir Shub, 1927) The Fall of the Romanov Dynasty is notable for being constructed almost entirely out of stock footage which was compiled by director Esfir Shub, who had worked as an editor on several films before making this film. Whereas other documentary filmmakers, including Dziga Vertov, created films out of their own footage, Shub constructed a documentary narrative out of newsreel footage shot before the Revolution. Using this footage, she created a narrative about the brutality of the First World War and the neglect on the part of the Tsar and his ministers, one of the catalysts for the 1917 Revolution. Although she was working with found footage, Shub constructs meaning in her film in a way that is similar to the montage used by Eisenstein and Vertov. The juxtapositions of the upper classes at leisure with the carnage on the front lines as well as footage of Lenin with massive crowds creates a pro-Bolshevik narrative out of actuality footage. However, her extensive use of intertitles describing the events shown on screen further distinguishes her from the major Soviet directors of the day, driving the narrative forward and making it completely comprehensible for audiences. - Lev Vladimirovich Kuleshov. Kuleshov on Film: Writings. Ed. and trans. Ronald Levaco (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1974) 20. Director: Esfir Shub Year: 1927 Production Company: Sovkino (This and all subsequent descriptions of films are from Kinoglaz Online.)

1. The Russian Revolution

Reading

Wikipedia: “The Russian Revolution” (This is a fairly reliable overview of a complex stretch of history)

Trotsky: Preface to the History of the Russian Revolution

Zabel: “Brief Remarks on the Russian Revolution and Esfir Shub’s, The Fall of the Romanov Dynasty”

Discussion

Introduce yourself on the Discussions page of our Blackboard Site

Make your entries for Session 1 on the Discussions page of our Blackboard Site

Film

The Fall of the Romanov Dynasty (Esfir Shub, 1927)

The Fall of the Romanov Dynasty is notable for being constructed almost entirely out of stock footage which was compiled by director Esfir Shub, who had worked as an editor on several films before making this film. Whereas other documentary filmmakers, including Dziga Vertov, created films out of their own footage, Shub constructed a documentary narrative out of newsreel footage shot before the Revolution. Using this footage, she created a narrative about the brutality of the First World War and the neglect on the part of the Tsar and his ministers, one of the catalysts for the 1917 Revolution.

Although she was working with found footage, Shub constructs meaning in her film in a way that is similar to the montage used by Eisenstein and Vertov. The juxtapositions of the upper classes at leisure with the carnage on the front lines as well as footage of Lenin with massive crowds creates a pro-Bolshevik narrative out of actuality footage. However, her extensive use of intertitles describing the events shown on screen further distinguishes her from the major Soviet directors of the day, driving the narrative forward and making it completely comprehensible for audiences.

- Lev Vladimirovich Kuleshov. Kuleshov on Film: Writings. Ed. and trans. Ronald Levaco (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1974) 20.

Director: Esfir Shub

Year: 1927

Production Company: Sovkino

(This and all subsequent descriptions of films are from Kinoglaz Online.)