Marina Sivak

Screenwriting Manuals and Social Change: Perspectives from the Soviet Union in the 1920s

Free University of Berlin, Germany

This paper delves into the historical context of screenwriting practices in the Soviet Union during the 1920s, specifically examining screenwriting manuals and their role in making the film medium accessible to a broader audience. The study explores the intersection of history and theory in screenwriting from the vantage point of how screenwriting techniques were taught after the October Revolution.

In the early era of silent cinema, Russian screenwriting manuals were primarily translated works. Following the October Revolution of 1917, the Soviet film industry sought to harness the potency of cinema as a propaganda tool and a catalyst for societal transformation, driven by the perceived universality of the film language. Amidst intense debates about the cinematic form, new screenwriting manuals were authored. The paper provides an overview of several screenwriting manuals, including one by Shklovsky, and situates them within the broader context of the professionalization of screenwriters.

The study underscores the paradoxical nature of early attempts to professionalize screenwriting. Despite the aspiration to motivate a wide audience to write screenplays and capture the essence of the daily life of the working class, the outcomes did not align with expectations. The lack of clear direction and expertise in the field, even among the manual authors themselves, reflects the uncertainties surrounding early endeavors to create an effective screenwriting routine.

Marina Sivak is a doctoral candidate and research assistant at the Free University of Berlin. She completed her Master’s thesis in literature studies at the University of Erfurt, exploring the intricacies of screenwriting in the Soviet Union during the 1920s. Her research focused on institutional and creative practices immediately following the October Revolution.

Currently pursuing her doctoral dissertation, she investigates Soviet travelogues from the perspective of the work tasks and services of the authors. Her work aims to shed light on the intersection of literature, bureaucracy, and rhetoric.