The famous Soviet film director Larisa Efimovna Shepitko was born on January 6, 1938 in the city of Artemovsk (Ukraine). Received secondary education in a regular school, which she graduated in 1954. A year later, Larisa entered VGIK at the directing department. As a student, she starred in several films. Shepitko’s diploma work was the full-length film “Heat” based on Aitmatov’s work “Camel Eye”. The shooting took place in Kyrgyzstan at the film studio "Kyrgyzfilm". At the installation of the picture, Larisa met Elem Klimov, who was also a student at VGIK. Young people began to meet, and in 1963 they got married.
Filming and Botkin's Disease
It was a beautiful couple. Both were self-sufficient, independent of each other in terms of work, but could not be separated for a long time. Elem was several years older than his wife, but she graduated from VGIK much earlier. During the filming of "Heat" the whole group caught jaundice. I had to leave for a while, some of the actors left for Moscow, some, including Larisa and her husband, remained. The weakened Shepitko led the filming process, sitting on a hospital stretcher. Elem was engaged in the current installation. Filming in a somewhat truncated version, but still continued.
Religion
Larisa was a believer, although she was considered a member of the Komsomol. She did not hide her religiosity, and this negatively affected her career, while atheism was in its prime. Shepitko was also convinced that there is an afterlife and the transmigration of souls. She was haunted by the feeling that she had once lived in the setting that now surrounded her. Once in a completely unfamiliar room, where she ended up with Elem, Larisa felt that she had once been here. She pointed to a regular table and said: cards were played here, this is an ombre table. When the tablecloth was removed, then under it was a green card cloth.
Carier start
The thesis of the beginning director Larisa Shepitko was awarded the prize "For a successful debut" at the 1964 International Film Festival in Karlovy Vary. The picture also received a prize at the First All-Union Film Festival in Leningrad. Film critics noted that a new significant figure appeared in the film industry, which has serious potential.
Larisa Shepitko, whose biography then opened the next page, became famous after the release of her second film called “Wings”, filmed in 1966. The film presented the story of the pilot Nadezhda Petrukhina and her post-war fate.
Local participation in filming
Shepitko's next work - the film "Homeland of Electricity" based on the stories of Andrei Platonov - was shot in the Astrakhan region, in the village of Seroglazovo. The population of the surrounding villages called for numerous secondary roles. Larisa Shepitko became the first director who invited local residents who had no idea about cinema to participate in the production. The shooting was successful, but the film was put on the shelf for ideological reasons.
Atmosphere of creativity
Cheerless Shepitko immediately shot her next picture, "At the thirteenth hour of the night." It was a musical fairy tale story on a good color film with the participation of such actors as Georgy Vitsin, Vladimir Basov, Spartak Mishulin, Zinovy Gerdt and Anatoly Papanov. All the actors worked willingly, feeling the director’s benevolent attitude. The film-tale turned out to be colorful, cheerful and informative.
Another color film called "You and Me" Larisa Shepitko made in 1971. It was a film on the topic of the day, frankly satirical and at the same time set at a good artistic level. When creating the film, the director tried her hand as a screenwriter. Larisa Efimovna Shepitko created the plot of the future picture together with Gennady Shpalikov, a professional filmmaker.
The film was about a generation of thirty. In the story, two medical scientists "buried" their talent for the sake of material achievements and personal popularity of a very dubious nature. The main roles were played by Yuri Vizbor, Alla Demidova and Leonid Dyachkov. For this work, Larisa Efimovna Shepitko was awarded the medal "Victory in the competition of young filmmakers." After this award, the direction of her creative activity somewhat changed towards greater realism.
Popularity and recognition
Larisa Shepitko, whose films were notable for genuine sincerity, became more and more popular. She received bags of letters from fans and was very worried that she could not answer her fans. Fame gave her strength, and Larisa Shepitko, whose photographs were posted in many newspapers and magazines, worked with renewed vigor. In 1974, she received recognition at the state level, becoming an Honored Artist of the RSFSR.
Many believe that the work of the director is not a female matter. Indeed, men are predominantly employed in this profession. However, Larisa Shepitko is an exception, she is the first woman director who received an official offer to work in Hollywood. The invitation was not accepted.
Contacts
Larisa closely communicated and was friends with well-known representatives of Western cinema, among whom were Francis Coppola, Bernardo Bertolucci and others. She even made friends with the eccentric Lisa Minelli. Shepitko shocked the morals of Hollywood, widespread alcoholism, immorality, the absence of elementary decency.
Energetics
God kept Hollywood from Larisa Shepitko, otherwise she would have instantly subjugated everyone there, from small to large. The actress-director had a truly inhuman energy. Actor Alexei Petrenko, who played Rasputin in the movie "Agony," lost all of his character’s iron will, barely Shepitko appeared on the set, replacing her husband Elem Klimov for several days. But Rasputin had no equal strength of mind, his bullets did not take, death bypassed. Of course, the actor Petrenko is not Rasputin, but he has already become accustomed to the image. And suddenly, from the legendary seer, Alexei turns into a limp creature, just at least give up the role.
Otherworldly forces
In the work of Shepitko Larisa, there were always subtle mystical moods. The same thing was observed with Elem Klimov, her husband and partner in directing, who openly invited psychics, hypnotists, and foretellers to the set. Once during the filming, Wolf Messing himself appeared. Larisa did not practice such invitations, but some spirit of the other world was present in her work. As one producer remarked: “The site smells of sulfur.”
Larisa anticipated her near demise and willingly shared her feelings with those close to her. Filming "Farewell to Matera" according to the script by Valentin Rasputin, she publicly stated that this was her last work. And so it happened, after the death of Larisa Elem Klimov finished the story in memory of his wife and called it "Farewell."
The death of Larisa Shepitko
Early in the morning of July 2, 1979, the Volga 22M filming machine moved along a deserted highway one hundred and fifty kilometers west of Tver. In the car were Larisa Shepitko, cameraman Vladimir Chukhnov, painter Yuri Fomenko and assistants. The oncoming car loomed far ahead, it was a massive truck that was fast approaching.
When the distance between the cars was reduced to one hundred meters, the Volga suddenly wagged and flew into the oncoming lane. The strongest blow followed, no one had a chance to survive. They buried Larisa Shepitko at the Kuntsevo cemetery in Moscow. Thirty-six years have passed, and fans often gather at the grave with bouquets of fresh flowers.
Larisa Shepitko, filmography
Most of the directorial works of Larisa Shepitko contain scenes with her participation, since she was a professional actress and willingly played in her films.
If she was invited to some role in someone else's film, she did not refuse, but on condition that her character be secondary.
Such films were:
- "Carnival Night", a cameo.
- "The Poem of the Sea", episode.
- "Ordinary story", the character of Nina.
- "Tavria", the role of Gann.
- "Sport, sport, sport", the character of the queen, the role is episodic.
- "Agony", a short episode.
On the account of Larisa Shepitko five scenarios:
- "Farewell" by Valentin Rasputin, script written in 1978.
- "Ascent" based on the novel by Vasil Bykov, the script was created in 1976.
- "You and Me", own work, 1971.
- "Homeland of Electricity", the script was written in 1967 based on the novel by Andrei Platonov.
- “Heat”, Shepitko’s script was written in 1963 especially for her thesis, taking as the basis the novel of the same name by Chingiz Aitmatov.
Director's work
- Blind Cook, short film, term paper, shot in 1956.
- "Living Water", short film, term paper, 1957.
- "Heat", a feature film, thesis, 1963.
- Wings is the first film project directed by Shepitko, filmed in 1966.
- "Homeland of Electricity", film diaries, 1967.
- "At the thirteenth hour of the night," a fairy tale film, 1969.
- "You and Me," 1971.
- "Ascent", 1976th.
- Forgiveness with Matera, 1979 (work not finished).