Director Sergei Mokritsky, best known for “the Battle of Sevastopol” and “the Draft” has begun work on a large-scale game picture “the First “Oscar”. She tells about how it was created, the documentary “the Defeat of German forces near Moscow”, received in 1943, the first time in the history of the Oscar in new Academy award nomination For “best documentary”. The first phase of filming Sergei Mokritsky was supposed to start in Los Angeles, where he took a real 15th the Oscar ceremony. Everything was ready. But as the thunder quarantine. All I had to urgently stop.
“the Defeat of German troops near Moscow” was shot 15 frontline operators under the guidance of Directors Leonid Varlamov and Ilya Kopalin. American producer David Selznick, at that moment, the son-in-law of the founder of the American Academy of Louis Meyer, who had produced the films “king Kong” and “gone with the wind”, made for the sake of this picture appear in the regulations of the “Oscar” nominated For “best documentary”. In American theaters, it received the name “Moscow Strikes Back” (“Moscow strikes back”).
According to the producer of the film “the First “Oscar” Natalia Mokritskiy, this is a great project about frontline operators, who graduated from VGIK, whose diploma was the film “the Defeat of German troops near Moscow”. The picture began to prepare in December, went to Los Angeles. Did the casting, selected location, ordered suits, paid for the food. Shooting was to begin in late February, and the ceremony was decided to withdraw from 15 to 23 March. But first introduced a limit — you can withdraw up to 100 people, then no more than 50. Then the American screen actors Guild has forbidden its members to go to the Playground. March 14, shooting was suspended.
Sergei Mokritsky, when we talked to him, was in the US and was waiting for a flight to Moscow, already lost for that period of hope for a speedy resumption of filming.
You decided to make this film, because it learned from frontline operators?
I remembered the words of Mikhail Romm: it is necessary to do what you know. I was born near Zhitomir and still found times when may 9, half of our village came out in suits with medals. It was all 45-year-old people, younger than I am now. They thought, argued, and this was most important for me minutes. With a cinematic point of view war is a dramatic moment, the fate and the circumstances in which is manifested the quintessence of all human and non-human. My masters on the operator’s faculty of VGIK was Alexander Galperin Anatoly Koloshin. They we are rarely told about the war. In the book “the Price of the frame” says that Alexander Vladimirovich Halperin on the orders of Stalin were sent to the far East to remove our defenses. Stalin had some personal Operatori. He did not go to the front, but he knew, according to the sources, about what is happening there, thanks to the chronicle, which he showed, including dedicated only to him. One such special operators was Halperin.
And he will be your hero under the name Alperin?
— Yes, this is my bow to the master, with whom we had a very warm relationship. Only now understand how it was difficult to take on professional education, I was, at that time the ordinary seaman of Ishmael, who knew nothing about the movie, but was so eager to get to know him. Preparing for work, I watched a lot of documentaries, read memories. Tactical operator Simon Students described how he had to remove the guerrillas, the night was blowing up German trains. The film was then low sensitivity, and can’t see at night. Had to persuade the commander of the guerrilla squad of young partisans did it at dawn. When they left, the Germans saw them and began to shoot. A young man was wounded, and he died at the hands Shkolnikova. If everything is happening at night, he would still be alive. Shkolnikov until the end of life dreamed of this man. That’s the price of the frame. I was amazed. I have included in my next film episode, where a soldier dies only because the operator asked him not to behave like in a real battle, and how better for a frame.
How your story will be reliable?
I faced a problem: whether it is necessary to become attached to the fate of a real person, such as, say, Vladislav Mikosha. He filmed the battle of Sevastopol, came to America and brought on the boat first “Oscar”, witnessed the signing of the Japanese surrender. One of these events enough for large-scale film, and in his biographies of dozens of them. But I decided to create a collective image. We have two such heroes — Ivan and Lev. Ivan brought up the Soviet government and orphanage, believes in the ideology that believes that movies should inspire, elevate men to the attack. During the war, operators have worked together since the cameras had to be frequently recharged, and if one kills, the second should finish the job and pick up the material. Partner Ivan became a lion Alperin. What Leo sees in reality at the front, and that takes Ivan, in his understanding corresponds to the truth in the war. He tries to understand the true face of war, not propaganda, and how this tragedy shows man. The collision of the two recording methods and two characters, and they are both in love with the same girl. All the circumstances taken from the fate of 258 frontline operators.
the Chronicle of the First world war — guns, explosions, gas attacks — was shot around the world in just five operators. And during world war II, this profession has become very popular. And today, decades later, we see that has “the tail wagging the dog”, and you can come up with a virtual war, show them on TV around the world.
In the United States will remove only the Oscar ceremony?
Not only. We have six episodes. Twists and turns with the “Oscar” was not humorous. We’ll show you who was for, who against, how the audience reacted to Soviet film. Whose footage is more valuable than Ivan or Lion? We will talk about the making of the film “the Defeat of German forces near Moscow” against the backdrop of the Battle for Moscow. In November the battle began. December became the most powerful month of fighting and filming. In January, the movie is edited and shown to Stalin, who said, “One good film is worth several divisions”. This is the same weapon. Surprisingly, the film was actually made in a month.
Who would you play?
Russian casting will be continued in Moscow as soon as will be allowed. In America, I was faced with the fact that some of the actors refused to work when the pandemic was just beginning. They said, “No, we won’t take risks.” Russian people are more reckless, but it is very important to obtain permission to shoot. I need the time to build the scenery, and it involves a large group of people. I care about two issues. Last winter there was almost no snow. And during the Battle of Moscow in winter was the snow. What to do? To senerity large spaces is impossible to leave too. In pursuit of snow to throw somewhere tanks, planes, guns, soldiers? The second reason has to do with the timing. It is important that the film is “the First “Oscar” was seen in February and March 2022, after 80 years since the establishment of the “Defeat of German forces near Moscow” for the anniversary of the battle of Moscow.
