diziler we were tomorrow

The appearance of "Essays" was a qualitatively new step in the development of domestic film studies. A wide range of scientists belonging to different schools and directions in film studies took part in the work. The authors did not set themselves the goal of consistently covering all stages of the formation and development of cinematography on the territory of Ukraine. But, without a doubt, the compilers and authors managed to focus on key moments, trace the most important regularities of the filmmaking process. Issues that have remained on the margins of the historical science of cinema have come into focus. Separate chapters are devoted to both local phenomena and entire historical stages, and the authors mostly build their research on a solid theoretical foundation.

A text dedicated to television (by I. Pobedonostseva) stands a little apart from the general picture. And yet its appearance seems quite logical in the general structure of the book. After all, today most of the films become the achievement of a wide audience precisely thanks to their demonstration on the TV screen. In addition, television makes it possible to introduce the younger generation to the heritage of cinematic classics. Essays are thought to be just the beginning. They will become the foundation of the publication, built on a systematic and consistent presentation and analysis of the processes and phenomena of domestic cinema.

An important event in the development of cinema art in the 30s was the invention of sound. This new discovery actively influenced the development of the system of cinematic expressiveness, became an important component of the film image and led to the emergence of musical film genres: musicals, film operas, etc. At the same time, analyzing this period in the history of world cinema, it is necessary to remember that the 30s of the 20th century. were associated with acute social cataclysms. On the one hand, the Great Depression, which stunned the USA, and on the other hand, the imminent danger of fascism and totalitarianism, which loomed over Europe, gave rise to feelings of insecurity, fear, and tragic foreboding in the artists of the 1930s.