Creativity Between Compromises: Volnytsia's Movies about Collective Farms, Moonshine, and Ecology

We invite you to a talk about the collection of the Volnytsia People's Film Studio as part of the public [unarchiving] program.

The family of Dmytro Kozel, a film amateur from Chernihiv region, has preserved his unique collection of about one hundred 16 mm films from the period of 1970-1990s. At that time, it was common practice to set up film studios at collective farms, cultural centers, or factories. Although there were many such collective farms, cultural centers, and factories, their cultural heritage is unevenly preserved and largely unknown. The discovery of even one such collection is an event because it allows us to reflect on the practices of others, and talking about this collection encourages us to look for others and be attentive to local heritage.

Under the leadership of Dmytro Kozel, the Volnytsia amateur film studio worked in the village of Zhovtneve (modern Rozhdestvenske, Chernihiv oblast) and created an audiovisual encyclopedia of local collective farms: from solemn meetings and speeches by party leaders to a full cycle of seasonal work. Along with the story of the "victories of the socialist struggle," we find issues of the satirical film magazine Zhakan, which contain a sharp look at the negligence and personal responsibility of collective farmers for the failure to fulfill plans and the environmental impact of farms, rather than at the inefficiency of collective farm production.

In addition, the studio worked on social satirical comedy sketches, films with historical and cultural plots that document the revival of Ukrainian identity in the villages of Chernihiv region in the first years of independence.

During the event, we will talk about the activities of the Volnytsia Film Studio, as well as about the culture of the 1970s and 1980s, and the phenomenon of amateur film studios. Together, we will try to look at the collection of the studio in a thematic context, taking into account the socio-political circumstances.

Credits

Cover Image: a still from Igor Sudakov's film Two Days Longer