Mosfilm (, ''Mosfil’m'' , initialism and portmanteau of Moscow Films) is a

film studio A film studio (also known as movie studio or simply studio) is a major entertainment company that makes films. Today, studios are mostly financing and distribution entities. In addition, they may have their own studio facility or facilities; how ...

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

which is among the largest and oldest in the

Russian Federation Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

and in

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

. Founded in 1924 in the

USSR The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

as a production unit of that nation's film monopoly, its output includes most of the more widely acclaimed Soviet-era films, ranging from works by Andrei Tarkovsky and

Sergei Eisenstein Sergei Mikhailovich Eisenstein; (11 February 1948) was a Soviet film director, screenwriter, film editor and film theorist. Considered one of the greatest filmmakers of all time, he was a pioneer in the theory and practice of montage. He is no ...

, to Red Westerns, to the

Akira Kurosawa was a Japanese filmmaker who List of works by Akira Kurosawa, directed 30 feature films in a career spanning six decades. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential filmmakers in the History of film, history of cinema ...

co-production '' Dersu Uzala'' () and '' War and Peace'' ().

History

The

film

production company A production company, production house or production studio is a studio that creates works in the fields of performing arts, new media art, film, television show, television, radio, comics, interactive arts, video games, websites, music, and video ...

with studio facilities was established in November 1920 by the motion picture mogul Aleksandr Khanzhonkov ("first film factory") and I. Ermolev ("third film factory") as a unit of Goskino, the USSR's film monopoly. The first movie filmed by Mosfilm was ''On the Wings Skyward'' (directed by Boris Mikhin). In 1927, the construction of a new film studio complex began on Potylikha Street (renamed to Mosfilmovskaya Street in 1939) in

Sparrow Hills Sparrow Hills (, ), formerly known as Lenin Hills (, ), is a hill on the right bank of the Moskva River and one of the highest points in Moscow, reaching a height of above the river level. The observation platform is on a steep bank above ...

of Moscow. This film studio was named after the ''Moscow amalgamated factory Soyuzkino "Tenth Anniversary of

October Revolution The October Revolution, also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution (in Historiography in the Soviet Union, Soviet historiography), October coup, Bolshevik coup, or Bolshevik revolution, was the second of Russian Revolution, two r ...

"''. In 1934, the film studio was renamed to ''Moskinokombinat'', and in 1936 was relaunched under the ''Mosfilm'' name, the name it carries till today. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

the film studio personnel were evacuated to Alma-Ata (August 1941) and merged with other

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

production units into the ''Central United Film Studio'' (''TsOKS''). The Mosfilm personnel returned to Moscow at the end of 1943. The Mosfilm intro, representing the monument " Worker and Kolkhoz Woman" by Vera Mukhina and Spasskaya Tower of the Kremlin, was introduced in 1947 in the musical comedy '' Springtime'' directed by Grigori Aleksandrov and starring Lyubov Orlova and Nikolai Cherkasov. After the

dissolution of the Soviet Union The Soviet Union was formally dissolved as a sovereign state and subject of international law on 26 December 1991 by Declaration No. 142-N of the Soviet of the Republics of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union. Declaration No. 142-Н of ...

, Mosfilm had produced more than 3,000 films, some of them being granted awards at international film festivals. It continued operations as a quasi-private

, led by film director Karen Shakhnazarov. As of 2005, the company embraced ten independent studios, located within 13 sound stages occupying an area of 13,000 sq. meters. Tours through this "Russian Hollywood" included a view of Mosfilm's enormous depot with 170 tanks and 50 vintage cars. According to Mosfilm chairman Shakhnazarov the studio handed over to the

Russian Armed Forces The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, commonly referred to as the Russian Armed Forces, are the military of Russia. They are organized into three service branches—the Russian Ground Forces, Ground Forces, Russian Navy, Navy, and Russi ...

in 2023 28 T-55 tanks, 8 PT-76 tanks, 6

infantry fighting vehicle An infantry fighting vehicle (IFV), also known as a mechanized infantry combat vehicle (MICV), is a type of armoured fighting vehicle and armoured personnel carrier used to carry infantry into battle and provide direct fire, direct-fire suppo ...

s and 8

tow truck A tow truck (also called a wrecker, a breakdown truck, recovery vehicle or a breakdown lorry) is a truck used to move disabled, improperly parked, Vehicle impoundment, impounded, or otherwise indisposed motor vehicles. This may involve recoverin ...

s. The biggest sound stage is leased annually to hold the Golden Eagle Awards. In 2011, Mosfil
released a selection of its classic films
online for free viewing.Mosfilm uploads celluloid classics to youtube
/ref>

Selected films

;Directed by

*1925 '' The Battleship Potemkin'', a historical

silent film A silent film is a film without synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, w ...

*1938 '' Alexander Nevsky'', a historical film *1946 '' Ivan The Terrible, Part II'', a historical film ;Directed by Andrei Tarkovsky *1960 '' The Steamroller and the Violin'', a short film *1962 '' Ivan's Childhood'', the

Golden Lion The Golden Lion () is the highest prize given to a film at the Venice Film Festival. The prize was introduced in 1949 by the organizing committee and is regarded as one of the film industry's most prestigious and distinguished prizes. In 1970, a ...

Award winner at the 1962

Venice Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival (, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival held in Venice, Italy. It is the world's oldest film festival and one of the ...

*1966 ''

Andrei Rublev Andrei Rublev (, ; ) was a Russian artist considered to be one of the greatest medieval Russian painters of Orthodox Christian icons and frescoes. He is revered as a saint in the Eastern Orthodox Church, and his feast day is 29 January. Ear ...

'' *1972 '' Solaris'' (sci-fi) *1975 '' The Mirror'' *1979 '' Stalker'' *1983 '' Nostalghia'' (drama) ;Others *1934 '' Jolly Fellows'' directed by Grigori Alexandrov (

musical comedy Musical theatre is a form of theatre, theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, ...

) *1935 '' Aerograd'' directed by Alexander Dovzhenko (science fiction) *1936 ''

Circus A circus is a company of performers who put on diverse entertainment shows that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, dancers, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, magicians, ventriloquists, and unicy ...

'' directed by Alexandrov (musical comedy) *1938 '' Volga-Volga'' also directed by Alexandrov (musical comedy) *1939 '' Minin and Pozharsky'' directed by Vsevolod Pudovkin and Mikhail Doller (historical film) *1950 '' The Fall of Berlin'' directed by Mikheil Chiaureli, (war,

propaganda Propaganda is communication that is primarily used to influence or persuade an audience to further an agenda, which may not be objective and may be selectively presenting facts to encourage a particular synthesis or perception, or using loaded l ...

). Music by

Dmitri Shostakovich Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich, group=n (9 August 1975) was a Soviet-era Russian composer and pianist who became internationally known after the premiere of his First Symphony in 1926 and thereafter was regarded as a major composer. Shostak ...

*1956 '' Ilya Muromets'' directed by Aleksandr Ptushko (

fantasy film Fantasy films are films that belong to the fantasy genre with fantastic themes, usually Magic (paranormal), magic, supernatural events, mythology, folklore, or exotic fantasy worlds. The Film genre, genre is considered a form of speculative fic ...

) *1957 '' The Cranes Are Flying'', a war drama directed by

Mikhail Kalatozov Mikhail Konstantinovich Kalatozov ( ka, მიხეილ კალატოზიშვილი, ; 28 December 1903 – 26 March 1973), born Mikheil Kalatozishvili, was a Soviet film director of Georgians, Georgian origin who contributed to b ...

, 1958 winner of

Palme d'Or The (; ) is the highest prize awarded to the director of the Best Feature Film of the Official Competition at the Cannes Film Festival. It was introduced in 1955 by the festival's organizing committee. Previously, from 1939 to 1954, the festiv ...

at the

Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Film Festival (; ), until 2003 called the International Film Festival ('), is the most prestigious film festival in the world. Held in Cannes, France, it previews new films of all genres, including documentaries, from all around ...

*1957 '' Miles of Fire'', an ostern film directed by Samson Samsonov *1959 '' Ballad of a Soldier'', a

war film War film is a film genre concerned with warfare, typically about navy, naval, air force, air, or army, land battles, with combat scenes central to the drama. It has been strongly associated with the 20th century. The fateful nature of battle s ...

directed by Grigori Chukhrai, a 1959 special jury prize winner of

and 1961

Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...

nominant. *1959 '' White Nights'', a soviet drama directed by Ivan Pyryev *1962 '' Hussar Ballad'' directed by Eldar Ryazanov (comedy) *1963 '' Walking the Streets of Moscow'' directed by Georgi Daneliya (comedy) *1964 '' Welcome, or No Trespassing'' directed by Elem Klimov (comedy) *1964 ''

I Am Cuba ''I Am Cuba'' (; , ''Ya – Kuba'') is a 1964 film directed by Mikhail Kalatozov at Mosfilm. An international co-production between the Soviet Union and Cuba, it is an anthology film mixing political drama and propaganda. The film was almost ...

'' directed by

(

expressionism Expressionism is a modernist movement, initially in poetry and painting, originating in Northern Europe around the beginning of the 20th century. Its typical trait is to present the world solely from a subjective perspective, distorting it rad ...

) *1965 '' Adventures of a Dentist'' directed by Elem Klimov (comedy) *1966 '' Watch Out for the Automobile'' directed by Eldar Ryazanov (comedy) *1966 '' Wings'' directed by Larisa Shepitko (drama) *1966 '' The Elusive Avengers'' directed by Edmond Keosayan ( Ostern) *1967 '' Viy'' (

Film adaptation A film adaptation transfers the details or story of an existing source text, such as a novel, into a feature film. This transfer can involve adapting most details of the source text closely, including characters or plot points, or the original sou ...

horror film Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit physical or psychological fear in its viewers. Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with Transgressive art, transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements of the genre include Mo ...

) *1968 '' War and Peace'' directed by Sergei Bondarchuk (historical),

for Best Foreign Language Film in 1968 winner. *1968 '' The Nile and the Life'' (feature film) *1968 '' The Diamond Arm'' directed by Leonid Gaidai (comedy) *1969 '' Liberation'' directed by Yuri Ozerov (historical drama) *1969 '' The Brothers Karamazov'' (historical),

for Best Foreign Language Film in 1969 nominant. *1969 '' White Sun of the Desert'' directed by Vladimir Motyl ( Ostern) *1971 '' Tchaikovsky'' directed by

Igor Talankin Igor Vasilyevich Talankin () (3 October 1927 – 24 July 2010) was a Soviet and Russian film director and screenwriter. His film ''Splendid Days'' (1960, co-directed with Georgiy Daneliya) won the Crystal Globe (Karlovy Vary International Film Fes ...

(historical),

for Best Foreign Language Film in 1971 nominee. *1971 '' Stariki-razboyniki'' directed by Eldar Ryazanov (comedy) *1972 '' Gentlemen of Fortune'' (comedy) *1973 '' Ivan Vasilievich: Back to the Future'' directed by Leonid Gaidai (comedy) *1974 ''

At Home Among Strangers ''A Friend to Foes, a Foe to Friends'' (; ''Svoy sredi chuzhikh, chuzhoy sredi svoikh'') is a 1974 Soviet Red Western film starring Yuri Bogatyryov and Anatoly Solonitsyn and directed by Nikita Mikhalkov. It is Mikhalkov's directorial debut. P ...

'' directed by Nikita Mikhalkov ( ostern) *1974 '' Unbelievable Adventures of Italians in Russia'' directed by

Franco Prosperi Franco Prosperi (2 September 1926 – 17 October 2004) was an Italian film director and screenwriter, active between the mid-1960s and the early 1980s. Career Born in Rome, Prosperi began his career as an assistant director with Mario Bava ...

and Eldar Ryazanov *1975 '' Dersu Uzala'' (Soviet-Japanese joint production) directed by

(historical),

for Best Foreign Language Film in 1975 winner. *1975 '' Siberiade'' directed by

Andrei Konchalovsky Andrei Sergeyevich Konchalovsky (; né Mikhalkov; born 20 August 1937) is a Russian film and theatre director, screenwriter, and producer. His filmmaking career spans over 60 years in Cinema of the Soviet Union, Soviet, Cinema of the United St ...

(saga) *1975 '' Afonya'' directed by Georgi Daneliya (comedy) *1975 '' The Irony of Fate'' directed by Eldar Ryazanov (comedy) *1976 '' The Ascent'' directed by Larisa Shepitko (

), the Golden Bear Award at the Berlin Film Festival in 1977 winner. *1976 '' Queen of the Gypsies'' directed by

Emil Loteanu Emil Loteanu (6 November 1936 – 18 April 2003) was a Moldovan and Soviet film director born in what is now Republic of Moldova. He moved to Bucharest and Moscow in his early life. His best known films are '' Lăutarii'', '' Gypsies Are Found Ne ...

(

drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

) *1977 '' Mimino'' directed by Georgi Daneliya (comedy) *1977 '' Office Romance'' directed by Eldar Ryazanov (comedy) *1979 '' Air Crew'' directed by Alexander Mitta (disaster movie) *1979 '' Moscow Does Not Believe In Tears'' (melodrama),

for Best Foreign Language Film in 1980 winner. *1981 '' Private Life'' (drama) directed by Yuli Raizman,

for Best Foreign Language Film in 1981 nominee. *1981 ''

Teheran 43 ''Teheran 43'' (Russian: ''Тегеран-43''; French: ''Téhéran 43, Nid d'espions'') is a 1981 Soviet-French-Swiss political thriller film made by Mosfilm, ''Mediterraneo Cine'' and ''Pro Dis Film'', directed by Aleksandr Alov and Vladimir ...

'' (spy) *1982 '' Lenin in Paris'' (historical) *1985 '' Come and See'' directed by Elem Klimov (

; a co-production with Belarusfilm) *1986 '' Kin-dza-dza!'' directed by Georgi Daneliya (science-fiction) *1987 '' A Man from the Boulevard des Capucines'' ( red western) directed by Alla Surikova *1990 ''Lessons at the End of Spring'' (), written and directed by Oleg Kavun (drama) *2002 '' The Star'' (

) directed by Nikolai Lebedev *2007 '' The Irony of Fate 2'' *2008 '' You and I'' *2008 ''The Vanished Empire'' () *2012 ''Kromov'' () *2012 '' White Tiger'' *2016 '' Mrs K'' (Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, and South Korea.) *2017 '' Anna Karenina: Vronsky's Story'' *2019 '' Soldier Boy

References

External links

*
Mosfilm Studios - 360 PanoramasHumus Project - Mosfilm: History and fantastic trailers of the most famous and funny movies

Mosfilm cinema at Google Cultural Institute
{{Authority control Film production companies of Russia Russian film studios Federal State Unitary Enterprises of Russia Mass media companies established in 1920 1920 establishments in Russia Entertainment companies of the Soviet Union Soviet film studios

History

Selected films

See also

References

External links