The photographer captured the instance during the production of They Fought for Their Country, i.e. reading the script and discussing a plan for the new shooting day. In the photo, actors Vasily Shukshin, Georgy Burkov, and Yuri Nikulin are sitting at a round table inside the cabin with the screenwriter and director Sergei Bondarchuk (right to left).
They Fought for Their Country is a Soviet film based on the eponymous novel by the writer Mikhail Sholokhov. The motion picture was recognised as the best in 1976 by a poll of the Soviet Screen magazine. In 1977, it received Vasiliev Brothers State Prize of the RSFSR. The film starred Vasily Shukshin, Vyacheslav Tikhonov, Sergey Bondarchuk, Georgy Burkov, Yuri Nikulin, and Ivan Lapikov. Nonna Mordyukova, Innokenty Smoktunovsky, and Irina Skobtseva also took part in the film.
Shooting took place near Melologovsky hamlet in the Volgograd region, not far from the village of Kletskaya, where the novel was set. The film crew lived aboard the Danube ship, which was moored to the banks of the Don river. Sergei Bondarchuk began every day by discussing scenes with the actors. Although Shukshin did not play a leading part, he was always present at morning meetings.
In an interview to a local newspaper, Shukshin noted, ‘… There is such a concept: until the spirit of the army, the spirit of the people, is broken — the people and the army are invincible. And Lopakhin, whose role I play, is the bearer of this unbroken spirit. The role is interesting, the role is difficult. Actually this is my first encounter with Mikhail Alexandrovich’s creation in a film. This work is responsible and much-needed. And I will try to give it all I have’.
Shukshin participated in the filming process until the autumn of 1974. In this same year, on the night of October the 2nd, he died of acute heart failure. He was buried at Novodevichy Cemetery in Moscow.
Filming continued without him. The role of Pyotr Lopakhin was further played by the actor Yuri Solovyov and voiced by Igor Efimov.
Before the premiere, a public viewing took place at Vyoshenskaya Village House of Culture on April 10th, 1975. A close-up of Shukshin froze on the screen during the credits at the end of the film. Thus, the creators of the motion picture honoured his memory.
They Fought for Their Country is a Soviet film based on the eponymous novel by the writer Mikhail Sholokhov. The motion picture was recognised as the best in 1976 by a poll of the Soviet Screen magazine. In 1977, it received Vasiliev Brothers State Prize of the RSFSR. The film starred Vasily Shukshin, Vyacheslav Tikhonov, Sergey Bondarchuk, Georgy Burkov, Yuri Nikulin, and Ivan Lapikov. Nonna Mordyukova, Innokenty Smoktunovsky, and Irina Skobtseva also took part in the film.
Shooting took place near Melologovsky hamlet in the Volgograd region, not far from the village of Kletskaya, where the novel was set. The film crew lived aboard the Danube ship, which was moored to the banks of the Don river. Sergei Bondarchuk began every day by discussing scenes with the actors. Although Shukshin did not play a leading part, he was always present at morning meetings.
In an interview to a local newspaper, Shukshin noted, ‘… There is such a concept: until the spirit of the army, the spirit of the people, is broken — the people and the army are invincible. And Lopakhin, whose role I play, is the bearer of this unbroken spirit. The role is interesting, the role is difficult. Actually this is my first encounter with Mikhail Alexandrovich’s creation in a film. This work is responsible and much-needed. And I will try to give it all I have’.
Shukshin participated in the filming process until the autumn of 1974. In this same year, on the night of October the 2nd, he died of acute heart failure. He was buried at Novodevichy Cemetery in Moscow.
Filming continued without him. The role of Pyotr Lopakhin was further played by the actor Yuri Solovyov and voiced by Igor Efimov.
Before the premiere, a public viewing took place at Vyoshenskaya Village House of Culture on April 10th, 1975. A close-up of Shukshin froze on the screen during the credits at the end of the film. Thus, the creators of the motion picture honoured his memory.
