Alexander Sokurov's 'Russian Ark' Premieres in New York and Los Angeles
The film 'Russian Ark,' directed by Alexander Sokurov, had its special pre-screenings at Lincoln Plaza Cinema in New York City from December 2002 to January 2003, followed by showings at the Nuart Theater in Los Angeles in January 2003. This 2002 release, lasting 99 minutes, was filmed in a single continuous take within the State Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia. It explores Russian history, spanning from Peter the Great to the final imperial ball in 1913, featuring actors such as Sergey Dreiden, Maria Kuznetsova, and Leonid Mozgovoy. The production was a collaboration with the State Hermitage Museum, Egoli Tossell Film AG, and others, with cinematography by Tilman Buettner and music by the Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra. The film's remarkable single steadicam shot, filmed on December 23, 2001, necessitated extensive coordination among hundreds of participants. An article on ARTMargins Online, published on May 6, 2003, discusses the film as a reflection on history, archivization, and post-Soviet Russian identity, referencing theories from Jacques Derrida and Walter Benjamin.
Key facts
- The film 'Russian Ark' premiered in New York City and Los Angeles in late 2002 and early 2003.
- Directed by Alexander Sokurov, it was shot in a single, unbroken take on December 23, 2001.
- The entire film is set within the State Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia.
- It features historical figures from Peter the Great to Czar Nicholas II, culminating in a 1913 ball.
- The production involved over 900 actors and extras, filmed among priceless artworks.
- Cinematographer Tilman Buettner operated a heavy steadicam for the entire 99-minute shot.
- The film is a co-production of the State Hermitage Museum and the Russian Ministry of Culture.
- The article analyzes the film as an exploration of history, memory, and post-Soviet melancholia.
Entities
Artists
- Alexander Sokurov
- Sergey Dreiden
- Maria Kuznetsova
- Leonid Mozgovoy
- Anatoly Nikiforov
- Tilman Buettner
- Sergei Dontsov
- Peter the Great
- Catherine the Great
- Czar Nicholas II
- Pushkin
- Jacques Derrida
- Walter Benjamin
- Samuel Weber
- Gilles Deleuze
- Sergei Eisenstein
- Dziga Vertov
- Hubert Robert
- Mikhail Iampol'skii
- Dragan Kujundzic
- Marquis de Custine
- Bartolomeo Rastrelli
- Rastrelli Junior
- Iosif Orbeli
- Boris Piotrovsky
- Mikhail Borisovich Pyotrovski
- Victor Shklovsky
- Geraldine Norman
- Didier Maleuvre
- Donald Preziosi
- Jon Beasley Murray
- Brian Henderson
- Francois Lyotard
- B.V. Markov
- K.S. Pigrov
- Svetlana Proskurina
- A. Deryabin
- Tom Tykwer
- Harrison Ford
- Karen Allen
- Steven Spielberg
- Flaubert
- Hegel
- Nietzsche
- Heidegger
- Freud
- El Greco
- Van Dyck
- Rembrandt
- Lucas van Leyden
- Domenico Feti
- Bernardo Strozzi
- Kerstaien de Kueninck
- Jean Bilevelt
- Abraham Bloemaert
- Glinka
- Tchaikovsky
- Tintoreto
- Canova
- Carlo Bartolomeo Rastrelli
- Vladimir Iliich Lenin
- Malevich
- Shchusev
- Fustel de Coulanges
- Hannah Arendt
- David Bordwell
- Kristin Thompson
- Peter Brunette
- David Wills
- Eric Prenowitz
- Susan A. Crane
- Bill Nichols
- Birgit Beumers
- Paisley N. Livingston
- Philip Rosen
- E.N. Ustiugova
- Alan Cholodenko
- Harry Zohn
- Hugh Tomlinson
- Robert Galeta
- Marina Kanevskaya
- Ora Gelley
- Michael du Plessis
- Susan Jarrett
- Deborah Levitt
- Bliss Felicidad Lim
- Maja Manojlovic
- Mary Reilly
- Bryan Reynolds
- Irina Sandomirskaia
- Brigitte Weltman-Aron
Institutions
- State Hermitage Museum
- Hermitage Bridge Studio
- Egoli Tossell Film AG
- Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation
- Fora-Film M
- Celluloid Dreams
- Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra
- Lincoln Plaza Cinema
- Nuart Theater
- ARTMargins Online
- European Film Academy
- Kunstkamera
- Louvre
- SUNY Press
- University of California Press
- Harvard University Press
- Princeton University Press
- University of Chicago Press
- Stanford University Press
- Columbia University Press
- University of Minnesota Press
- I.B.Tauris
- Fromm International Publishing Corporation
- Novi Sad: Matica srpska
- Moscow: Ad marginem
- Gallimard
- McGraw-Hill
- Henry Regnery Company
- Seans Press
- Novoe literaturnoe obozreniie
- Sovetskii pisatel'
- St. Petersburg State University
- Faculty of Philosophy
- Landmark Theatres
Locations
- New York City
- United States
- Los Angeles
- St. Petersburg
- Russia
- Moscow
- Switzerland
- France
- Germany
- Italy
- Netherlands
- Kursk
- Leningrad
- Siberia
- Vasilevsky Island
- Petergof
- Versailles
- Baltic Sea
- Carthage
- Jericho
- Syria
- Egypt