A Russian & Soviet Movie Podcast with Ally Pitts

Ally Pitts
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A Russian & Soviet Movie Podcast with Ally Pitts

History fan, cinephile, and former Moscow resident Ally Pitts from the UK explores the delights of Russian & Soviet cinema one film at a time! In the process, expert guests share their insights into topics ranging from the Golden Age of Hollywood to Eastern European cuisine. Occasionally, Ally also tackles non-Russian attempts to bring Russian literature or history to the Silver Screen.

  1. 4 DAYS AGO · BONUS

    Interview with film composer Juliet Merchant

    Composer and musician Juliet Merchant joins host Ally Pitts to discuss some of the silent films she has written scores for.  At the time of recording, six of the films Juliet has composed scores for are available on the streaming service Klassiki, which is available in the UK, the US, and the Republic of Ireland. Here’s a link to a 30-day free trial: https://klassiki.online/arussiansovietmoviepodcast/  If you use the code RUPOD50, you can get 50% off an annual subscription. The films are:Aelita: Queen of Mars (Yakov Protazanov; 1924) The Extraordinary Adventures of Mr West in the Land of the Bolsheviks (Lev Kuleshov; 1924) Girl with the Hatbox (Boris Barnet; 1927) House on a Volcano (Hamo Bek-Nazaryan; 1929) Love's Berries (Oleksandr Dovzhenko; 1926) A Life for a Life (Yevgeny Bauer; 1916)  Links mentioned/alluded to in the episode: julietmerchantmusic.com/ The Golden Silent Films podcast HippCast: The Hippodrome Silent Film Festival podcast  Ally Pitts on Media-eval: a medieval pop-culture podcast with Dr Sarah Ifft-Decker: The Passion of Joan of Arc (Carl Theodor Dreyer; 1928)  Ally Pitts on The Top 100 podcast with Tim Coleman: Man with a Movie Camera (Dziga Vertov; 1929) Contact us/socials: All the links for a Russian & Soviet Movie Podcast you're ever likely to want or need: linktr.ee/russiansovietmoviepodcast Letterboxd: https://letterboxd.com/Ally_Pitts/https://letterboxd.com/ally_pitts/films/reviews/ https://letterboxd.com/ally_pitts/list/enjoy-the-silents-my-silent-film-recommendations/ https://letterboxd.com/ally_pitts/list/silent-films-with-scores-by-juliet-merchant/  We've changed the name of the show, but the social handles/contacts are a bit of a mishmash. Email: russophilesunite@gmail.com Twitter (or 'X', if you really insist): @RussophilesU Listen to Ally's other podcast appearances on Podchaser

    1h 24m

  2. NOV 17 · BONUS

    NEWS: Two Soviet silent film screenings in Nov '24

    Ally Pitts announces a screening of Lev Kuleshov’s By the Law; 3pm on Sunday 24th November '24 at the Barbican Cinema, and a screening of Sergei Eisenstein's Battleship Potemkin at the Winter Gardens in Morecambe in Lancashire on at 7.15pm on Saturday 30th November '24. Links mentioned/alluded to in the episode: https://www.barbican.org.uk/whats-on/2024/event/silent-film-live-music-by-the-law  https://www.northernsilents.com/whats-on/battleship-potemkin-morecambe  https://www.northernsilents.com/silents-by-the-sea  Ally Pitts on The Top 100 podcast with Tim Coleman: Man with a Movie Camera (Dziga Vertov; 1929) Contact us/socials: All the links for a Russian & Soviet Movie Podcast you're ever likely to want or need: linktr.ee/russiansovietmoviepodcast We've changed the name of the show, but the social handles/contacts are a bit of a mishmash. Email: russophilesunite@gmail.com Twitter (or 'X', if you really insist): @RussophilesU Letterboxd: https://letterboxd.com/Ally_Pitts/https://letterboxd.com/ally_pitts/films/reviews/ https://letterboxd.com/ally_pitts/list/enjoy-the-silents-my-silent-film-recommendations/ https://letterboxd.com/ally_pitts/list/silent-films-with-scores-by-juliet-merchant/  Listen to Ally's other podcast appearances on Podchaser

    6 min

  3. SEP 22

    100 years of Aelita: Queen of Mars (Yakov Protazanov; 1924) [Classic episode re-release with new intro, outro and music]

    Classic episode re-release, featuring music by composer Juliet Merchant. In this episode, originally released in August 2018, Sarah Roberts, artist and podcaster, joins Ally Pitts to discuss this early Soviet silent sci-fi adventure. SPOILERS from about 16 minutes in until the end.CONTENT WARNING: discussion of the film's depiction of abusive relationships and violence against women. Links mentioned/alluded to in the episode: Art by guest Sarah Roberts: https://sarahkathleenroberts.com/ Composer Juliet Merchant's live performance dates: julietmerchantmusic.com/  Ally Pitts on The Top 100 podcast with Tim Coleman: Man with a Movie Camera (Dziga Vertov; 1929) Ally Pitts on Media-Eval: A Medieval Pod Culture Podcast with Dr. Sarah Ifft-DeckerAlly's silent film recommendations on Letterboxd klassiki.online/yuliya-solntseva-hidden-history-soviet-queen-of-film/  klassiki.online/podcast/ For a 30-day free trial of the streaming service Klassiki: https://klassiki.online/arussiansovietmoviepodcast/ If you use the code RUPOD50, you can get 50% off an annual subscription. www.royalacademy.org.uk/exhibition/eye-of-the-storm  www.royalacademy.org.uk/article/start-here-modernism-in-ukraine  slaviclitpod.com/aelita-1924-by-protazanov/  theukrainianmuseum.org/alexandra-exter-the-stage-is-a-world/  Aelita screening 9th November 2024 @ St. Hilda's College, Oxford, UK with live performance by Juliet Merchant  Aelita screening 20th October 2024 @ the Fine Arts Building, Chicago Didn't mention this in the episode, but we should have: it's Silent Movie Day 2024 on 29th September. Contact us/socials: All the links for a Russian & Soviet Movie Podcast you're ever likely to want or need: linktr.ee/russiansovietmoviepodcast We've changed the name of the show, but the social handles/contacts are a bit of a mishmash. Email: russophilesunite@gmail.com Twitter (or 'X', if you really insist): @RussophilesU Letterboxd: https://letterboxd.com/Ally_Pitts/ Listen to Ally's other podcast appearances on Podchaser

    1h 20m

  4. AUG 24 · BONUS

    Alexandra Exter, Aelita, and Modernist Art in Ukraine 1900-1930

    Host Ally Pitts shares news about two exhibitions running in 2024 that feature the work of artist Alexandra Exter. He also discusses a previous film covered on the podcast, Aelita, which she worked on as a costume designer and set decorator.  The Royal Academy of Art's exhibition is In the Eye of the Storm: Modernism in Ukraine from 1900 to the 1930s. That's in London and runs until 13th October 2024 The Ukrainian Museum's exhibition is Alexandra Exter: The Stage is a World. That's in New York City and is running from 27th September 2024 until 19 January 2025 Links mentioned in the episode:https://www.royalacademy.org.uk/exhibition/eye-of-the-storm  https://www.royalacademy.org.uk/article/start-here-modernism-in-ukraine  Art by previous guest Sarah Roberts:https://sarahkathleenroberts.com/  https://slaviclitpod.com/aelita-1924-by-protazanov/  https://www.theukrainianmuseum.org/alexandra-exter-the-stage-is-a-world/  https://klassiki.online/yuliya-solntseva-hidden-history-soviet-queen-of-film/  https://klassiki.online/podcast/ For a 30-day free trial of the streaming service Klassiki: https://klassiki.online/arussiansovietmoviepodcast/ If you use the code RUPOD50, you can get 50% off an annual subscription. Contact us/socials: All the links for a Russian & Soviet Movie Podcast you're ever likely to want or need: linktr.ee/russiansovietmoviepodcast We've changed the name of the show, but the social handles are a bit of a mishmash. Email: russophilesunite@gmail.com Twitter (or 'X', if you really insist): @RussophilesU Letterboxd: https://letterboxd.com/Ally_Pitts/ Listen to Ally's other podcast appearances on Podchaser

    8 min

  5. JUL 21 · BONUS

    NEWS: Béla Tarr & Tarkovskian echoes

    Host Ally Pitts shares news about the BFI's Béla Tarr retrospective season Will Heaven Fall Upon Us? Ally's local, the Ultimate Picture Palace in Oxford is one of the participating UK cinemas. Links mentioned/alluded to in the episode: Béla Tarr retrospective Season at the Ultimate Picture Palace in Oxford  For a 30-day free trial of the streaming service Klassiki: https://klassiki.online/a-russian-soviet-movie-podcast/ The Top 100 podcast with Tim Coleman   Peter Bradshaw's interview with Béla Tarr for the Guardian   https://www.criterion.com/films/33388-werckmeister-harmonies   The British Film Institute's Béla Tarr retrospective season  Ally's Klassiki recommendations on Letterboxd   Damnation blu-ray from Arbelos   Calvert Journal article on Béla Tarr by Carmen Gray Some UK independent cinemas taking part in the Béla Tarr retrospective: https://tynesidecinema.co.uk/film-seasons/bela-tarr-retrospective/ https://www.showroomworkstation.org.uk/belatarrcollection https://www.riocinema.org.uk/movie/will-heaven-fall-upon-us  All the links for a Russian & Soviet Movie Podcast you're ever likely to want or need: linktr.ee/russiansovietmoviepodcast Contact us/socials: We've changed the name of the show, but the social handles are a bit of a mishmash. Email: russophilesunite@gmail.com Twitter (or 'X', if you really insist): @RussophilesU Letterboxd: https://letterboxd.com/Ally_Pitts/ Listen to Ally's other podcast appearances on Podchaser

    7 min

  6. JUL 14

    Nostalgia AKA Nostalghia (Andrei Tarkovsky; 1983)

    International(?) man of mystery Lyn Seren joins Ally Pitts to discuss Andrei Tarkovsky's penultimate film. We also talk about rückenfigurs and Milton Keynes artists Boyd & Evans a bit! Links mentioned/alluded to in the episode: International Association for Suicide Prevention’s directory: https://www.iasp.info/suicidalthoughts/  UK: https://www.samaritans.org/  US: https://988lifeline.org/  All the links for a Russian & Soviet Movie Podcast you're ever likely to want or need: linktr.ee/russiansovietmoviepodcast For a 30-day free trial of the streaming service Klassiki: https://klassiki.online/arussiansovietmoviepodcast/ If you use the code RUPOD50, you can get 50% off an annual subscription. Milton Keynes-based artists Boyd & Evans: https://www.boydandevans.com/   British-Russian comedian Olga Koch: https://www.rocknrolga.com/  Oxford Comedy Festival: https://oxfordcomedyfestival.co.uk/  Contact us/socials: We've changed the name of the show, but the social handles are a bit of a mishmash. Email: russophilesunite@gmail.com Twitter (or 'X', if you really insist): @RussophilesU Letterboxd: https://letterboxd.com/Ally_Pitts/ Listen to Ally's other podcast appearances on Podchaser

    1h 25m

  7. MAY 19

    NEWS: Man with a Movie Camera, 60 years of Mikhail Kalatozov’s I am Cuba, and Oxford Meet-ups

    Links mentioned in the episode: The Top 100 Podcast with Tim Coleman: Man with a Movie Camera episode with Ally Pitts. Saint Audio Podcast Festival line-up Saint Audio Podcast Festival announcement episode. I am Cuba, directed by Mikhail Kalatozov, screening at the Ultimate Picture Palace in Oxford. At the time of recording, Salt for Svanetia is available to stream on Klassiki, which is available in the UK, the US, and the Republic of Ireland. If you use the code RUPOD50, you can get 50% off an annual subscription. Jean-Pierre Melville episode of Shoot the Piano Player: A French New Wave Podcast with Spencer Seams & Joel Torres. Criterion release of I am Cuba, directed by Mikhail Kalatozov. Contact us/socials: (We've changed the name of the show, but the social handles are a bit of a mishmash). Email: russiansovietmoviepod@gmail.com Twitter (or 'X', if you really insist): @Russophiles Instagram: instagram.com/russiansovietmoviepodcast/ Letterboxd: https://letterboxd.com/Ally_Pitts/ Listen to Ally's other podcast appearances on Podchaser

    4 min

  8. APR 7 · BONUS

    EVENT: The Saint Audio Podcast Festival, 23-26 May '24 in Oxford, UK!

    Saint Audio Podcast Festival is happening over the late May Bank Holiday Weekend (that's 23-26 May), in Oxford, UK! See you there, maybe? Links mentioned in the episode: Saintaudiopodcastfestival.com  Screening of Spice World (1997) at the Ultimate Picture Palace, presented by The Flop House podcast. Contact us/socials: (We've changed the name of the show, but the social handles are a bit of a mishmash). Email: russophilesunite@gmail.com Twitter (or 'X', if you really insist): @Russophiles Instagram: instagram.com/russiansovietmoviepodcast/ Letterboxd: https://letterboxd.com/Ally_Pitts/ Listen to Ally's other podcast appearances on Podchaser

    3 min
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4.7
out of 5
14 Ratings

About

History fan, cinephile, and former Moscow resident Ally Pitts from the UK explores the delights of Russian & Soviet cinema one film at a time! In the process, expert guests share their insights into topics ranging from the Golden Age of Hollywood to Eastern European cuisine. Occasionally, Ally also tackles non-Russian attempts to bring Russian literature or history to the Silver Screen.

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