Victor Tourjansky
Encyclopedia
Victor Tourjansky or Viktor Tourjansky (4 March 1891 (Kiev
) - 13 August 1976 (Munich
), born Viatcheslav Tourjansky , was an actor, screenwriter and film director
of Russian cinema
who emigrated after the Russian Revolution of 1917. He worked in France, Germany, Italy and the USA.
, Tourjansky moved to Moscow in 1911, where he spent a year studying under Stanislavsky. He became involved with silent film and, two years later,
made his first productions as a screenwriter and director on the eve of the Great War. When the October Revolution
broke out, he left and stayed in Yalta
, which had not yet been taken by the Bolsheviks.
When the laws for the nationalisation of the cinema industry were applied to Crimea, he left with the Ermoliev film company and its actors for France, via Constantinople, in February 1920. He was accompanied by his wife, the actress Nathalie Kovanko. On arriving in Paris, he changed his birth name Viatcheslav, to Victor, which was more easily pronounceable for the French.
The new company was called Films Albatros.
He was the assistant to Abel Gance
for the filming of his Napoléon (1927).
He later worked for Universum Film AG
in Germany, where he arrived during the 1930s.
Kiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
) - 13 August 1976 (Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
), born Viatcheslav Tourjansky , was an actor, screenwriter and film director
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
of Russian cinema
Cinema of Russia
The cinema of Russia began in the Russian Empire, widely developed under the Soviet and in the years following the fall of the Soviet system, the Russian film industry would remain internationally recognised...
who emigrated after the Russian Revolution of 1917. He worked in France, Germany, Italy and the USA.
Biography
Born into a family of artists in KievKiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
, Tourjansky moved to Moscow in 1911, where he spent a year studying under Stanislavsky. He became involved with silent film and, two years later,
made his first productions as a screenwriter and director on the eve of the Great War. When the October Revolution
October Revolution
The October Revolution , also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution , Red October, the October Uprising or the Bolshevik Revolution, was a political revolution and a part of the Russian Revolution of 1917...
broke out, he left and stayed in Yalta
Yalta
Yalta is a city in Crimea, southern Ukraine, on the north coast of the Black Sea.The city is located on the site of an ancient Greek colony, said to have been founded by Greek sailors who were looking for a safe shore on which to land. It is situated on a deep bay facing south towards the Black...
, which had not yet been taken by the Bolsheviks.
When the laws for the nationalisation of the cinema industry were applied to Crimea, he left with the Ermoliev film company and its actors for France, via Constantinople, in February 1920. He was accompanied by his wife, the actress Nathalie Kovanko. On arriving in Paris, he changed his birth name Viatcheslav, to Victor, which was more easily pronounceable for the French.
The new company was called Films Albatros.
He was the assistant to Abel Gance
Abel Gance
Abel Gance was a French film director and producer, writer and actor. He is best known for three major silent films: J'accuse , La Roue , and the monumental Napoléon .-Early life:...
for the filming of his Napoléon (1927).
He later worked for Universum Film AG
Universum Film AG
Universum Film AG, better known as UFA or Ufa, is a film company that was the principal film studio in Germany, home of the German film industry during the Weimar Republic and through World War II, and a major force in world cinema from 1917 to 1945...
in Germany, where he arrived during the 1930s.
Filmography
- 1924 : Ce cochon de Morin
- 1924 : La Dame Masquée
- 1926 : Michel Strogoff (silent film)
- 1931 : L'Aiglon
- 1931 : Le Chanteur inconnu
- 1935 : Les Yeux noirs
- 1936 : La Peur
- 1937 : Nostalgie
- 1959 : Les Bateliers de la Volga
- 1960 : La Donna dei Faraoni
- 1961 : Le Triomphe de Michel Strogoff, with Curd JürgensCurd JürgensCurd Gustav Andreas Gottlieb Franz Jürgens was a German-Austrian stage and film actor. He was usually billed in English-speaking films as Curt Jurgens.-Early life:...
- 1962 : Una regina per CesareUna regina per CesareUna regina per Cesare is a historical drama film set in Egypt in 48 BC. Unlike other films about Caesar and Cleopatra, this film focuses entirely on the dynastic struggle within Egypt leading up to the arrival of Caesar, and in fact, we only see him in the closing scene of the film when he...
(AKA: A Queen for Caesar)
Source
- Christian Gilles, Le cinéma des années [trente, quarante, cinquante] par ceux qui l'ont fait, Paris : L'Harmattan, 2000. ISBN 9782738489517