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Amalrik, Leonid, Dmitri Babichenko & Vladimir Polkovnikov
Amalrik b. 1905, Moscow, Russia; d. 1997, Moscow
Victorious Destination, 1937 Black and white animated film, 7 min. Soyuzmultfilm Studios
Lenin famously declared that “of all the arts for us the most important is cinema” (in Lunacharsky 2005:57). Soviet theatres typically preceded screenings of feature-length films with short animated pictures like Victorious Destination. The state-owned animation studio Soyuzmultfilm produced hundreds of such shorts, promoting a starkly Manichaean vision of Stalin and his enemies. Victorious Destination summarises the accomplishments of the first two Five Year Plans in a rousing song: “Life’s gotten better, life’s got more cheer! / Long life, good health to you, Stalin, my dear!” CMF
Watch 'Victorious Destination' on Youtube