Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2001/02/25

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Subject: [Leica] Seattle: Film on Evgueni Khaldei
From: Peter Klein <pklein@2alpha.net>
Date: Sun, 25 Feb 2001 14:42:40 -0800

The film "Evgueni Khaldai, Photographer Under Stalin" will be shown on 
Wednesday, March 14, 2001, 9:30 PM at the downtown Cinerama.  It's being 
shown as part of the Seattle Jewish Film Festival.  The 1998 Belgian film 
was directed by Marc-Henri Wajnberg.  It's 60 minutes long, in Russian, 
with English subtitles.  It includes interviews with Khaldei conducted in 
his home.  And I'm sure, lots of Khaldei's photos.

Khaldei was in many ways a Soviet Alfred Eisenstadt.  He photographed many 
of the significant persons and events in the USSR.  He also had political 
troubles:  After being widely recognized as one of the greatest Soviet 
photographers, he was fired from Tass during Stalin's 1948 anti-Semitic 
purges.  After Stalin's death in 1953, he was hired by Pravda, only to be 
fired again in 1972, again because he was Jewish.

The film sounds like a fascinating piece, and it will be interesting to see 
how this world-class photographer dealt with the restrictions of both 
Communism and Russian anti-Semitism.

I plan to be there.  If anyone on the LUG, LEG or Olympus list will attend, 
let me know and we can say hello in person!

Feel free to re-post this to other photography lists you belong to.  It's 
possible that it will be shown at other Jewish film festivals or at 
art/inependent/foreign oriented film outlets.   I don't know if it's 
available on video.

- --Peter Klein
Seattle, WA