Our Notes & References

Striking photomontage cover for this extensive analysis of American cinema by Ilia Z. Trauberg (1905–48), the younger brother of Soviet cinema director Leonid Trauberg (1902–90), both of whom were born in Odessa.

First edition, uncommon: WorldCat locates 4 copies in the USA (out of 6 in total; in Stanford, J Hopkins, Amherst and the Academy Award Lib.)

Trauberg argues that any deep understanding of the history and methods of contemporary cinema must be reached through careful study of the unique “synthesis of decisive factors for the fate of film” which is American cinema. In particular, his work focuses on the art of the American actor, as well as its roots in “everyday social factors and the artistic atmosphere” (p. 9).

Nevertheless, the author is often critical of American cinema (as a moralistic reflection of capitalist society) and argues for the need to “determine the chiaroscuro in the work of the American actor and to exploit it in the construction of Soviet cinematography. Through the USA — to the USSR” (p. 10). The book contains detailed analyses of methods and techniques of various actors, the psychology of the “star”, the cinema city of Hollywood, and the actors’ background in life and social setting, the American press about film and its actors, and many other aspects of American cinema.

Wrappers by Valentina M. Khodasevich (1894–1970), a Soviet painter, stage designer, and graphic artist. The niece of poet Vladislav Khodasevich, she worked in Tatlin’s Moscow studio and participated in exhibitions of avant-garde organizations such as “Soiuz molodezhi”, “Bubnovyi valet”, “Mir iskusstva” and others. Curiously, the present work appears to have been created during her travels through Europe in 1924 to 1928.

Published by the Cinema Committee (Kino-Komitet) of the State Institute of Art History within the series of ‘Artisty ekrana: seriia knig o kino-akterakh i rezhisserakh’ [Artists of the screen: a series of books about film actors and director].