Editing Lev Kuleshov

{{Short description|Soviet filmmaker and film theorist}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2020}}
{{Infobox person
| name               = Lev Kuleshov
| image              = Lev Kuleshov.jpg
| image_size         = 200px
| birth_name         = Lev Vladimirovich Kuleshov
| birth_date         = {{OldStyleDate|13 January|1899|1 January}}
| birth_place        = [[Tambov]], [[Russian Empire]]
| death_date         = {{Death date and age|1970|3|29|1899|1|13|df=yes}}
| death_place        = [[Moscow]], [[Soviet Union]]
| occupation         = [[Film director]], [[screenwriter]]
| years_active       = 1917–1943
| spouse             = [[Aleksandra Khokhlova]] (m.1923)
}}
'''Lev Vladimirovich Kuleshov''' ({{langx|ru|Лев Владимирович Кулешов}}; {{OldStyleDate|13 January|1899|1 January}} &ndash; 29 March 1970) was a Russian and Soviet filmmaker and [[Film theory|film theorist]], one of the founders of the world's first [[film school]], the [[Gerasimov Institute of Cinematography|Moscow Film School]].<ref>{{cite book|title=Historical Dictionary of Russian and Soviet Cinema|author=Peter Rollberg|publisher=Rowman & Littlefield|year=2009|place=US|isbn=978-0-8108-6072-8|pages=379–383}}</ref> He was given the title [[People's Artist of the RSFSR]] in 1969. He was intimately involved in development of the style of film making known as [[Soviet montage theory|Soviet montage]], especially its psychological underpinning, including the use of editing and the [[Cut (transition)|cut]] to influence the emotions of audience, a principle known as the [[Kuleshov effect]]. He also developed the theory of [[creative geography]], which is the use of the action around a cut to connect otherwise disparate settings into a cohesive narrative.

==Life and career==
Lev Kuleshov was born in 1899 into an intellectual [[Russians|Russian]] family.<ref name="Fifty">Lev Kuleshov, Aleksandra Khokhlova, ''50 Years in Films''. Moscow: Iskusstvo, 1975, 303 pp. (Autobiography)</ref> His father Vladimir Sergeyevich Kuleshov was of [[Russian nobility|noble]] heritage; he studied art in the [[Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture]], despite his own father's disapproval. He then married a village schoolteacher Pelagia Aleksandrovna Shubina who was raised in an orphanage, which only led to more confrontation. They gave birth to two sons: Boris and Lev.{{fact|date=January 2024}}

At the time Lev Kuleshov was born, the family became financially broke, lost their estate and moved to [[Tambov]], living a modest life. In 1911 Vladimir Kuleshov died; three years later Lev and his mother moved to Moscow where his elder brother was studying and working as an engineer. Lev Kuleshov decided to follow the steps of his father and entered the Moscow School of Painting, although he didn't finish it. In 1916 he applied to work at the film company led by [[Aleksandr Khanzhonkov]]. He produced scenery for [[Yevgeni Bauer]]'s pictures, such as ''[[The King of Paris (1917 film)|The King of Paris]]'', ''For Happiness'' and others. With time Kuleshov became more interested in film theory. He co-directed his first movie ''Twilight'' in 1917. His next film was released under the Soviet patronage.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://ria.ru/spravka/20140113/988618031.html|publisher=[[Ria Novosti]]|title=Биография Льва Кулешова|date=13 January 2014}}</ref> Although many Russian filmmakers left the country after 1917, Kuleshov stayed, hoping to create a new Soviet cinema.<ref name="ReaderIntro">{{cite book |last1=Salys |first1=Rimgaila |editor1-last=Salys |editor1-first=Rimgaila |title=The Russian Cinema Reader |date=2013 |publisher=Academic Studies Press |location=[[Boston|Boston, Massachusetts]] |isbn=978-1-61811-212-5 |page=87 |chapter=The Extraordinary Adventures Of Mr. West In The Land Of The Bolsheviks}}</ref> He worked for the state, editing pre-revolutionary "bourgeois" footage to align with Boleshevik ideology.<ref name="Oxford">{{cite book |last1=Nussinova |first1=Natalia |editor1-last=Nowell-Smith |editor1-first=Geoffrey |title=The Oxford history of world cinema: the definitive history of cinema worldwide |date=1997 |publisher=Oxford Univ. Press |location=Oxford, UK |isbn=0-19-811257-2 |page=167 |chapter=The Soviet Union and the Russian Émigrés}}</ref>

Inspired by American films such as [[The Birth of a Nation]]<ref name="Early">{{cite book |last1=Gillespie |first1=David C. |title=Early Soviet cinema: innovation, ideology and propaganda |date=2000 |publisher=Wallflower |location=London |page=23 |url=https://archive.org/details/earlysovietcinem0000gill |isbn=1-903364-04-3}}</ref>  and lectures by [[Vladimir Gardin]],<ref name="Oxford"/> Kuleshov developed a philosophy of editing and montage, which he considered as fundamental to cinema as [[harmony]] was to music.<ref name="Taylor">{{cite journal |last1=Taylor |first1=Richard |title=A 'Cinema for the Millions': Soviet Socialist Realism and the Problem of Film Comedy |journal=Journal of Contemporary History |date=1983 |volume=18 |issue=3 |pages=445|doi=10.1177/002200948301800305 |jstor=260546 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/260546 |issn=0022-0094}}</ref> He famously demonstrated the eponymous [[Kuleshov Effect]] by juxtaposing the same footage of [[Ivan Mozzhukhin]] against different images, including a meal and a corpse. Although the footage was unchanged, viewers interpreted Mozzhukhin's expression differently based on its context.<ref name="Oxford"/> Kuleshov rejected [[Konstantin Stanislavski]]'s acting method, which emphasized psychology and emotions, and instead emphasized precise, legible movements which could be cleanly edited. He called his performers ''naturshchik'' (models) instead of "actors", and had them rehearse using a "spacial metric grid" to confirm their movements followed 90- and 45-degree angles.<ref name="Engineering">{{cite journal |last1=Olenina |first1=Ana |title=Engineering Performance: Lev Kuleshov, Soviet Reflexology, and Labor Efficiency Studies |journal=Discourse |date=2013 |volume=35 |issue=3 |pages=299–316|doi=10.13110/discourse.35.3.0297 |jstor=10.13110/discourse.35.3.0297 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.13110/discourse.35.3.0297 |issn=1522-5321}}</ref>

During 1918–1920 he covered the [[Russian Civil War]] with a documentary crew. In 1919 he headed the first Soviet film courses at the [[Gerasimov Institute of Cinematography|National Film School]]. He contributed the article "Kinematografichesky naturshchik" to the first issue of ''[[Zrelishcha]]'' in 1922. Among his other notable students were [[Vsevolod Pudovkin]], [[Boris Barnet]], [[Mikhail Romm]], [[Sergey Komarov (actor)|Sergey Komarov]], [[Porfiri Podobed]], [[Vladimir Fogel]] and [[Aleksandra Khokhlova]] who became his wife. Another one of his famous inventions was [[creative geography]], also known as artificial landscape. Those techniques were described in his book ''The Basics of Film Direction'' (1941) which was later translated into many languages.

In addition to his theoretical and teaching work, Kuleshov directed a number of feature-length films. Among his most notable works are an action-comedy ''[[The Extraordinary Adventures of Mr. West in the Land of the Bolsheviks]]'' (1924), a psychological drama ''[[By the Law]]'' (1926) adapted from the short story by [[Jack London]] and a biographical drama ''[[The Great Consoler]]'' (1933) based on [[O. Henry]]'s life and works. In 1934 and 1935 Kuleshov went to [[Tajikistan]] to direct there ''[[Dokhunda]]'', a movie based on the novel by Tajik national poet [[Sadriddin Ayni]], but the project was regarded with suspicion by the authorities as possibly exciting Tajik nationalism, and stopped. No footage survives.<ref name="Abdullaev">{{cite book|author=Kamoludin Abdullaev|title=Historical Dictionary of Tajikistan|year=2002|publisher=Rowman and Littlefield|isbn=978-1-5381-0251-0|pages=94–102}}</ref>

[[File:Аркадий Гайдар и Лев Кулешов.png|thumb|left|alt=Lev Kuleshov (left) and Arkady Gaidar at the Bolshevo House of Creativity in May 1941|Lev Kuleshov (left) and [[Arkady Gaidar]] at the [[Staraya Ladoga House of Creativity|Bolshevo House of Creativity]]. May 1941]]
After directing his last film in 1943, Kuleshov served as an artistic director and an [[Rector (academia)|academic rector]] at [[Gerasimov Institute of Cinematography|VGIK]] where he worked for the next 25 years.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.vokrug.tv/person/show/lev_kuleshov/|publisher=VokrugTV|title= Лев Кулешов
}}</ref> He was a member of the jury at the [[27th Venice International Film Festival]], as well as a special guest during other international film festivals.

Kuleshov was awarded the Order of Lenin shortly before his death.<ref name="Kovacs">{{cite journal |last1=Kovacs |first1=Steven |title=Kuleshov's Aesthetics |journal=Film Quarterly |date=1976 |volume=29 |issue=3 |pages=34–40 |doi=10.2307/1211711 |jstor=1211711 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/1211711 |issn=0015-1386}}</ref> He died in Moscow in 1970. He was buried at the [[Novodevichy Cemetery]]. He was survived by his wife [[Aleksandra Khokhlova]] (1897–1985) – an actress, film director and educator, granddaughter of [[Pavel Tretyakov]] and [[Sergey Botkin]]<ref name="Fifty" /> – and Aleksandra's son Sergei from her first marriage.

==Awards and honours==
* [[Order of the Red Banner of Labour]] (1944)
* [[Order of Lenin]] (1967)
* [[People's Artist of the RSFSR]] (1969)


==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
* Kuleshov, Lev. ''Kuleshov on Film'', translated and edited, with an introduction by Ronald Levaco. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1974.
* Kuleshov, L.V. ''Kuleshov on Film: Writings''. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 1974.
* Kuleshov, L. V., and E. S. Khokhlova. ''Fifty Years in Films: Selected Works''. Moscow: Raduga Publishers, 1987.
* Drubek, Natascha. ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=W0jMDgAAQBAJ&q=kulesov Russisches Licht]''. ''Von der Ikone zum frühen sowjetischen Kino'', Wien – Köln – Weimar: Böhlau 2012. 
* Graffy, Julian. "DVD Reviews" [of two [[Hyperkino]] editions of Kuleshov films], Studies in Russian and Soviet Cinema, 2010. 4:3, 345-354.DOI: 10.1386/srsc.4.3.345_7
* Izvolov, Nikolai and Natascha Drubek-Meyer. "Annotations for the Hyperkino Edition of Lev Kuleshov’s ''Engineer Prite’s Project'' (1918), Academia Series, RUSCICO 2010." ''Studies in Russian & Soviet Cinema''. 4.1 (2010): 65-93.
* Kepley, Jr., Vance. "Mr. Kuleshov in the Land of the Modernists." ''The Red Screen: Politics, Society, Art in Soviet Cinema''. Ed. Anna Lawton. London; New York: Routledge, 1992. 132-47. 
* Norris, Stephen. Lev Kuleshov (Dir.), "Proekt Inzhenera Praita" ("Engineer Prite’s Project"); "Velikii uteshitel’ (O. Genri v tiur’me)" ("The Great Consoler (O’Henry in Prison") (DVD Review 2011). https://artmargins.com/lev-kuleshov-dir-qproekt-inzhenera-praitaq-qengineer-prites-projectq-qvelikii-uteshitel-o-genri-v-tiurmeq-qthe-great-consoler-ohenry-in-prisonq-dvd-review/
* Olenina, Ana. "Lev Kuleshov’s Retrospective in Bologna, 2008: An Interview with Ekaterina Khokhlova." ''Art Margins Online''. (Oct 2008). 
* Yampolsky, Mikhail. "Kuleshov’s Experiments and the New Anthropology of the Actor." ''Inside the Film factory: New Approaches to Russian and Soviet Filmmaking''. Eds. Richard Taylor and Ian Christie. London, UK: Routledge, 1994, 31-50.

==External links==
{{Commons}}
* {{IMDb name|474487}}
* [http://artmargins.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=90%3Alev-kuleshov&Itemid=133 An interview with Lev Kuleshov's grand-daughter, the film scholar Ekaterina Khokhlova. By Ana Olenina.]

{{Lev Kuleshov}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kuleshov, Lev}}
[[Category:1899 births]]
[[Category:1970 deaths]]
[[Category:20th-century Russian male actors]]
[[Category:20th-century Russian screenwriters]]
[[Category:People from Tambov]]
[[Category:People from Tambovsky Uyezd]]
[[Category:Academic staff of the Gerasimov Institute of Cinematography]]
[[Category:Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture alumni]]
[[Category:Communist Party of the Soviet Union members]]
[[Category:People's Artists of the RSFSR]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Order of Lenin]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner of Labour]]
[[Category:Film theorists]]
[[Category:Russian male screenwriters]]
[[Category:Silent film directors]]
[[Category:Russian film directors]]
[[Category:Russian inventors]]
[[Category:Russian male silent film actors]]
[[Category:Soviet film directors]]
[[Category:Soviet screenwriters]]
[[Category:Soviet male screenwriters]]
[[Category:Burials at Novodevichy Cemetery]]