THE EMERGENCE OF FILM DISTRIBUTION IN KYIV AT THE END OF THE 19TH — BEGINNING OF THE 20TH CENTURY (PART II)
The Solovtsov Theater, 1910 / pastvu.com
For over 120 years, film distribution has existed in Kyiv as an independent type of business. How it all began and from what — which films were shown, who the audience was, and how much they paid… That’s what we’ll discuss.
When the first spectators, holding their breath, watched this novelty called in the French manner cinema in various halls, the champions of morality were outraged by the dominance of «foreignness» on the screens, where a significant part of the distribution consisted of erotic films.
How did cinemas quickly become a popular destination for audiences from various social backgrounds, and how did the conditions for film viewing gradually evolve?
That first cinema had many shortcomings: technical issues, disorganized halls, poor safety measures… The owners were not concerned with the interests of the audience. In response, the audience began to turn away from them, forcing the owners to take action. Sloped floors, comfortable seats, and emergency exits were introduced. The era of ether-oxygen lamps in projectors passed, and they became electric.
A new kind of entertainment industry — cinemas — began to spring up like mushrooms after the rain. By 1907, in Kyiv, just on Khreshchatyk alone, there were: «Vitograph» by A.V. Mianovsky (Khreshchatyk, 36), «Electrobiograph» by R. Shtremer (Khreshchatyk, 27), «Edisonoscope» by Charov, «Express» by Anton Shantser (Khreshchatyk, 25), the cinema «The Whole World» in Kramsky’s Small Theater (Khreshchatyk, 15), and the cinema theater and cinema-opera «Electron».
Moreover, there was electromyography — K. Stefan’s on Dumska Square and «Electrobiograph-Tir» by F. Schmidt on Volodymyrska Hill (where a shooting gallery was converted into a cinema). By 1911, the city had 28 cinemas, and by 1915, there were 34, along with five stores selling cinematographic equipment.
Who, then, frequented these numerous venues?
«Take a look inside the auditorium», wrote O. S. Serafimovich in 1912, «you’ll be surprised by the composition of the audience: here you’ll find everyone — students, gendarmes, writers and prostitutes, officers and female students, various intellectuals with glasses and beards, workers, clerks, merchants, society ladies, modistes, civil servants, in short, everyone…»
This indicates one thing: cinema was genuinely becoming an independent art form, and this art differed significantly from theater. Into this field, she quickly entered entrepreneurs of various calibers, eager to make substantial profits.
THEATRICAL ELEMENTS FOR CINEMAS
The development of cinema in Kyiv is unimaginable without the renowned entrepreneur Anton Oleksandrovych Shantser. An Austrian subject of Polish descent and a native of Galicia, he settled in Kyiv in 1907, where he owned a ladies’ fashion salon and became a millionaire property owner. He owned buildings in the city center on Mykolaivska Street, 11, Instytutska Street, 22, and Khreshchatyk, 38–42.
In March 1907, Shantser opened the illusion theater The Express Bio at Khreshchatyk, 25, and by August 1908, on the site of this illusion theater, a specially constructed cinema began operating, known as A. Shantser’s «Express». The newspaper «Kievlyanin» wrote on August 15, 1908, that the «Express» cinema was unique in the country in terms of improvements and beauty. First of all, it featured a full concert orchestra with 25 musicians to accompany silent films. And then came improvement after improvement…
In those days, it was crucial to equip newly built auditoriums with fire safety measures. The «Express» had ten(!) emergency exits from the parterre. The projection booth, made of concrete and iron, housed the cinematographic apparatus. The tastefully decorated auditorium was equipped with a ventilation system. The foyer, where a café with cold drinks and light snacks was set up, was adorned with mirrors and tapestries. Remember, this was in 1908…
FIRST NEWSREELS
In 1911, Anton Shantser founded the «Express» film studio (Khreshchatyk, 25), which produced newsreels and entertainment films. In 1913, the famous Petro Nesterov made history by performing the first group flight on an airplane, flying the route Kyiv — Oster — Nizhyn — Kyiv. A cinematographer from the «Express» film studio, photographer V. Dobrzhanovsky, was on board and filmed at an altitude of 1500 meters. This was the first aviation newsreel in history, lasting 30 minutes. This footage was repeatedly shown in Shantser’s cinemas and was highly successful. Over time, the «Express» studio’s films began to overshadow foreign newsreels.
Anton Shantser, with the participation of architect V. Rykov, built the largest cinema in Kyiv (with 1,100 seats) at Khreshchatyk, 38, which opened in December 1912. The entrance was adorned with massive doors with mirrored glass, and near them, as well as in the foyer, guests were greeted by black attendants with dazzling white smiles dressed in red liveries, white stockings, and gloves.
However, according to the Kyiv police, Shantser was not entirely above reproach. He was prosecuted, for example, for embezzling from the Italian trading company «Albertini & Co». Additionally, in the materials of the film historian S. Ginzburg, there are mentions of foreign intelligence activities. Collecting military information, they often relied on the work of newsreel cinematographers.
There is a theory that in 1914, the Austrian Shantser, the owner of the largest cinema in Kyiv, who showed local Kyiv newsreels in his theaters, had an exciting hobby. He allegedly smuggled (for a price, of course) footage of secret military installations abroad. Money, money…
CATERING TO THE AUDIENCE
Although conditions for the audience seemed to have improved, one crucial element we are now accustomed to was missing: there was no scheduled session system. For some reason, the owners did not implement it at the time. This system was only introduced in our country in the 1920s.
The active development of domestic cinema began in 1907–1908. For example, in 1907, a scene titled «Kochubey in Prison» (120 meters of film) was shot in a photo-cinema studio at Khreshchatyk, 39 in Kyiv. The scene was directed by actor Sukov-Vereshchagin, who also played the lead role of Kochubey.
The first professional cinematographers of that era began to emerge. In Kyiv, the oldest operator, Mykola Kozlovsky, transitioned to filmmaking. Owning a small photo studio, he even opened his cinema, «Illusion», at Khreshchatyk, 40 in 1906, where he showcased his films. The following year, he began filming local newsreels.
In 1910, the «Joint-Stock Cinematographic Society S. A. Frenkel» released a film-vaudeville titled «Three Loves in Bags», where actors from Mykola Sadovsky’s theater played the leading roles. Two years later, a dramatic sketch titled «Napoleon in Moscow» was filmed at the photo-cinema studio at Khreshchatyk, 39, and director Piddubny filmed scenes from the play «The Zaporizhzhian Treasure» under the title «Gypsy Grunya, or What a Mess» at Korsh’s cinema studio.
In 1912–1913, a group of well-known Ukrainian actors from Sadovsky’s theater (F. Levytsky, P. Kolesnykova, Ye. Dolya, M. Kolesnyk), as well as bandurist-artist D. Hamaliy, took on the task of filming excerpts from the most famous plays. The first was an adaptation of S. Zynevych’s comedy «Pan Shtukarevych». The filming took place in a small glass pavilion at Velyka Vasylkivska, 37. According to participants’ recollections, «a village house with three walls, a stove, without a ceiling, with benches and a table» was built in the pavilion. The decorations were rented from Sadovsky’s theater.
ART AND ITS FANS
The «cinematic» life of old Kyiv was vibrant. Managers did whatever they could to draw audiences under their roofs. Each promoted their theaters in their way. For instance, the «Bio» cinema on Dumska Square (now Independence Square) offered a unique deal: every man who bought a ticket was entitled to bring one lady for free. This clever «hook» allowed a young man courting a girl to say confidently, ticket in hand, «Let’s go to the movies tonight! Dinner’s on you!»
The important thing was that films started appearing. So did serials, often romantic dramas or horror films like «Fantômas» or «The Vampires». The first true movie fans emerged (of course, teenagers), eager to watch every episode of these serials.
During the Civil War, when Kyiv changed hands several times, a group of boys (what did they care about the war!) was desperate to finish watching a 10-episode adventure serial, «The Mysteries of New York». For some reason, every time the screening reached the fourth episode, another coup occurred. The cinema would close due to the fighting. When things calmed down, the showings would start over from the first episode.
Somehow, this group of young film enthusiasts got hold of a royal gold five-ruble coin (a considerable sum of money) and befriended the projectionist, who had all the film reels. They convinced him to host a «private screening». Late at night, he let the boys into the empty theater and played all ten episodes in a row. The screening lasted all night, and in the morning, the satisfied viewers were punished by their worried parents for being missing all night.
That’s how cinema was in our beautiful Kyiv over 100 years ago…
Today, you can watch a movie (or a series) with just a click of your index finger on a smartphone or a smart TV with a screen as large as a small city cinema. And not always for money. Times change, but the first is always the first.
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