Pavel Klushantsev
Encyclopedia
Pavel Vladimirovich Klushantsev ' onMouseout='HidePop("5865")' href="/topics/Saint_Petersburg">Saint Petersburg
, Russian Empire
– 17 April 1999, Saint Petersburg, Russia
) was a Russia
n film director, producer, screenwriter and author who worked during the Soviet Era. A self-taught special effects engineer, far ahead of his time, Klushantsev devised many effects and techniques used by major motion pictures for decades to come.
Klushantsev graduated from the Leningrad Fototechnikum in 1930 and worked four years for Belgoskino (National Belarus Cinema) as a cinematographer. In 1934, he began working at Lenfilm / Lennauchfilm (4 Melnichnaya Street, St. Petersburg), where he became a director and producer, primarily making science educational films including his visionary film – Road to the Stars. Prior to this film, Klushantsev's films were strictly factual, but here, the film builds on fact and extends it. The film becomes a hybrid documentary blending science with fiction edging firmly into science fiction. This film's special effects – the scientific accuracy of depicting weightlessness, construction in earth orbit, a rotating space station, and rocket travel to the moon – were the cutting edge visual effects of their time.
Planet of the Storms (Planeta Bur), Klushantsev's only feature film, was released in 1962. For this film, Klushantsev is especially noted for his meticulous design and creation of "John the Robot" – with over 42 points of articulation on its major body joints – one of the most technically complex robot costumes of its time. The film was subsequently expanded and re-edited by Roger Corman
for American distribution – as Voyage to the Prehistoric Planet
(1965) by Curtis Harrington
and as Voyage to the Planet of Prehistoric Women
(1968) by Peter Bogdanovich
. In both these versions, the original scenes drew acclaim.
Subsequent to Planet of the Storms, Klushantsev fell into disfavor in Soviet Russia and returned to making more science-based film shorts. He also authored popular books related to space, including K Drugim Planetam! [To Other Planets] (1959), Stantsiia "Luna" [Station "Moon"] (1965), and All About the Telescope (1980).
Klushantsev's works are featured among Russian Fantastika.
An English language documentary on Klushantsev's life and achievements, The Star Dreamer, was released in 2002 by Danish Vesterholt Film and TV.
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
, Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
– 17 April 1999, Saint Petersburg, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
) was a Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n film director, producer, screenwriter and author who worked during the Soviet Era. A self-taught special effects engineer, far ahead of his time, Klushantsev devised many effects and techniques used by major motion pictures for decades to come.
Klushantsev graduated from the Leningrad Fototechnikum in 1930 and worked four years for Belgoskino (National Belarus Cinema) as a cinematographer. In 1934, he began working at Lenfilm / Lennauchfilm (4 Melnichnaya Street, St. Petersburg), where he became a director and producer, primarily making science educational films including his visionary film – Road to the Stars. Prior to this film, Klushantsev's films were strictly factual, but here, the film builds on fact and extends it. The film becomes a hybrid documentary blending science with fiction edging firmly into science fiction. This film's special effects – the scientific accuracy of depicting weightlessness, construction in earth orbit, a rotating space station, and rocket travel to the moon – were the cutting edge visual effects of their time.
Planet of the Storms (Planeta Bur), Klushantsev's only feature film, was released in 1962. For this film, Klushantsev is especially noted for his meticulous design and creation of "John the Robot" – with over 42 points of articulation on its major body joints – one of the most technically complex robot costumes of its time. The film was subsequently expanded and re-edited by Roger Corman
Roger Corman
Roger William Corman is an American film producer, director and actor. He has mostly worked on low-budget B movies. Some of Corman's work has an established critical reputation, such as his cycle of films adapted from the tales of Edgar Allan Poe, and in 2009 he won an Honorary Academy Award for...
for American distribution – as Voyage to the Prehistoric Planet
Voyage to the Prehistoric Planet
Voyage to the Prehistoric Planet is a 1965 science fiction film directed by Curtis Harrington. The film is an American adapted and edited version of the Russian science fiction movie Planeta Bur directed by Pavel Klushantsev, with Curtis Harrington filming extra scenes featuring Basil Rathbone and...
(1965) by Curtis Harrington
Curtis Harrington
Curtis Harrington was an American film and television director whose work included experimental films, horror films, and episodic television.-Biography:...
and as Voyage to the Planet of Prehistoric Women
Voyage to the Planet of Prehistoric Women
Voyage to the Planet of Prehistoric Women is a science fiction film directed by Peter Bogdanovich. The film is an adapted version of Curtis Harrington's Voyage to the Prehistoric Planet, which in turn is adapted from the Russian 1962 feature Planeta Bur by Pavel Klushantsev...
(1968) by Peter Bogdanovich
Peter Bogdanovich
Peter Bogdanovich is an American film historian, director, writer, actor, producer, and critic. He was part of the wave of "New Hollywood" directors, which included William Friedkin, Brian De Palma, George Lucas, Martin Scorsese, Michael Cimino, and Francis Ford Coppola...
. In both these versions, the original scenes drew acclaim.
Subsequent to Planet of the Storms, Klushantsev fell into disfavor in Soviet Russia and returned to making more science-based film shorts. He also authored popular books related to space, including K Drugim Planetam! [To Other Planets] (1959), Stantsiia "Luna" [Station "Moon"] (1965), and All About the Telescope (1980).
Klushantsev's works are featured among Russian Fantastika.
An English language documentary on Klushantsev's life and achievements, The Star Dreamer, was released in 2002 by Danish Vesterholt Film and TV.
Filmography
- 1935. Seven Barriers (Семь барьеров)
- 1937. Intrepidity (Неустрашимые)
- 1946. Northern Lights (Полярное сияние)
- 1946. Meteors / Meteoroid (Метеориты / Meteory) (10 minutes)
- 1951. Universe / Kosmos (Вселенная / Vselennaya)
- 1957. Road to the Stars (Дорога к звёздам / Doroga k Zvezdam) (58 minutes)
- 1962. Planet of the Storms (Планета бурь / Planeta BurPlaneta BurPlaneta Bur is a 1962 Soviet film directed by Pavel Klushantsev.The film is also known as Planet of the Storms, Planet of Storms, Planet of Tempests, Planeta Burg and Storm Planet....
) (78 minutes) - 1965. Moon (Луна / Luna)
- 1968. Mars (Марс)
- 1970. I See the Earth (Вижу Землю) (16 minutes)
Awards
- Universe: Karlovy Vary International Film FestivalKarlovy Vary International Film FestivalThe Karlovy Vary International Film Festival is a film festival held annually in July in Karlovy Vary , Czech Republic. The Karlovy Vary Festival gained worldwide recognition over the past years and has become one of Europe's major film events....
(KVIFF VII), 1952. Diploma IV, International Film Festival, Paris, 1952. - Road to the Stars: All-Union Film FestivalAll-Union Film FestivalThe All-Union Film Festival was one of the most important film festivals of the Soviet Union. It was founded in 1958 and held regularly from 1964-1988. It was held annually from 1972 onwards, and bi-annually before that...
(VKF I), Moscow, 1958. International Cinema Festival (ICF) Technical and Scientific Films, Belgrade, 1958. - Moon: Gold Seal, Trieste IV ICF Fantastic Movies, 1966.
- Honored Artist of Russia, 1970.
External links
- Doroga K Zvezdam (Road to the Stars) BFI Synopses
- Lennauchfilm Brief history citing Klushantsev's work.
- Meteors (Метеориты) 1946 film posted on YouTube.
- Отзовитесь, марсиане! Web reproduction of the book's content, in Russian.
- Planet of the Storms (Lenfilm) Film description and photos.
- Road to the Stars (New Release / Star Dreamer) PDF of Film article cited above.
- Road to the Stars Analysis of the 1958 film; image comparison to Kubrick's 2001.
- Stantsiia "Luna" (Station "Moon") Reproduction of the book's content, in Russian.
- The Star Dreamer Danish Film Institute, photos
- The Star Dreamer Variety review by Dennis Harvey.
- Pavel Klushantsev Biographical information, online videos of three films. Russian language.