On May 26, The Documentary Film Center held the opening of the festival of rare Soviet films «Reflections». It’s a joint project of The Documentary Film Center, «Pioneer» cinema, international audiobook subscription service Storytel and ArtVisioner. Presenter of the series — art historian and movie critic Denis Gorelov.
Partners of the opening: «Vinicom» and Yamaha Music. Composer Artem Pys performed his own compositions and 20’s music on Yamaha N3X — hybrid instrument, combining mechanics of the phonic grand piano and leading digital technologies.
The screening was followed by the discussion of Dziga Vertov’s role in Soviet and international cinematography with Denis Gorelov and program director of the festival «Message to a human» Alexey Medvedev. This lecture, along with all the following will be posted as a special collection on Storytel.
«Reflections» programme is evenly distributed between two sites: The Documentary Film Center will present documentary films, while the Pioneer cinema will show feature films. All films in Pioneer cinema will be shown from 35mm film.
Egor Sennikov, Director of Special Projects, Pioneer cinema:
Soviet history, 30 years after the collapse of the Soviet Union, remains a completely unfamiliar subject for many. Events appear linear and flat, with only individual flashes of historical storms standing out. I believe that we all need this program: both curators and viewers, to better understand what the Soviet Union was about, what problems people were facing and what filled the Soviet reality.
Sergey Sdobnov, curator of Pioneer cinema’s public program:
In our program, together with film historians, critics and directors, we want to show Soviet cinematography — a field of continuous disputes about how Soviet movies showed life and death of a Soviet person, why we look back at the past with anxiety and look forward into the future with awkwardness. Going through the main topics of Soviet films, we invite viewers to take part in an experiment and to work on the history of our traumas and obsessions. Why talks continue in our kitchens and on Facebook on such topics as war, gender, or school which used to exist in a world that seems to be gone?
Maria Gotlib, Programme Director of The Documentary Film Center:
Russian school of documentary filmmaking is one of the most powerful in the world. No wonder our first Oscar went to a documentary. However, this part of the cultural heritage of the USSR is little known even to those who were born in the last years of the existence of the Soviet Union, to say nothing of the very young people living in an era of overload of audiovisual information. It is important for us to show this documentary film, which is, on the one hand, a testament to that era, and on the other hand, undisputed art. Rethink, find common ground and expand horizons of perception.
About the organizers
The Documentary Film Center is the first Russian documentary movie theater, a cultural and educational platform, and a distribution company that released films such as ‘Amy,’ ‘Sorokin Trip,’ ‘Woman’ among others. Since 2013, The Documentary Film Center is dedicated to expanding public access to documentary films.
Pioneer Cinema is a hot spot for cinema lovers appreciating good video and sound quality, preferring to watch movies with the original sound with subtitles. The program includes the main blockbuster movies — from art house to mainstream. Pioneer is a cinema without pop corn, which speaks volumes about its atmosphere.
Pioneer at Kutuzovsky has two spacious 84-seat halls. The cinema boasts the most modern equipment that allows you to watch films both in 3D and from film. Major international movie stars such as Francis Ford Coppola, Paul Verhoeven, Tim Burton, Isabelle Huppert, Fanny Ardant, Louis Garrel, Rutger Hauer, among others, visited Pioneer cinema.
Our partners
Storytel is an international audiobook subscription service. The Storytel library contains audiobooks from almost all genres, from classics and non-fiction to lectures, stand-ups and podcasts. This is a service that solves the problem of reading. It enables you to listen to audiobooks anytime, anywhere: while working out, doing household chores, commuting to and from work, on the plane, before bed, and whenever you want. Storytel creates and records its own unique content — lecture projects, podcasts, audio series, and also collaborates with the best voices in the country.
ArtVisioner is a project supporting young Russian contemporary art, monitoring trends on the international art scene and helping promote business projects through art. It was founded by curator and collector Ekaterina Charkina. Art Visioner offers art consulting, promotion of artists, collaborations with business, membership in a private club, among other services.
