Rusty nails and a puppeteer’s basement: behind the scenes of filming was shown at the Gorky Film Studio

An exhibition with the self-explanatory title “Behind the Scenes” opened at the Gorky Film Studio. Here you can immerse yourself in the filming process, from the nuances of writing a script, acting tests to the intricacies of working with lighting, costumes, scenery, makeup and virtual technologies. “Behind the Scenes” is the first exhibition project at the film studio, which by the summer will grow into a museum with a permanent exhibition. “MK” tested the shooting light and found out why sound engineers are not allowed to cut their hair or shave, and how the tradition of breaking a plate on the first day of filming began.

The story about the professional secrets of filmmakers begins with a clean slate. In front of us is a table at which the director, screenwriter, artist and other members of the film team seemed to have just sat. There are pieces of paper scattered around and cups with funny inscriptions like “the artist is always right” and “don’t panic, screenwriter.” Sheets of the scribbled script float above the table like birds. Anyone can sit down at their desk and add their “five cents” here. This epigraph sets the tone for the project.

Then we dive into all the nuances of the film process: for example, here you can learn about the emergence of a purely Russian tradition – breaking a plate before filming begins. It is generally accepted that this brings good luck to the future film. The first person to break a plate on a film set was director Sergei Eisenstein. True, he did this not out of luck, but out of anger at one of the actors during the filming of the first scene of the film “Battleship Potemkin.”

The next section is devoted to acting tests. Here is a rarity – an album of photo tests for the film “Seventeen Moments of Spring”. In Soviet times, such an album had to be shown to the studio’s artistic council, even if the actors had already been approved. Opposite are video frames of modern samples, which are now divided into three stages. First, self-testing – the candidate for the role independently films an excerpt from the script and sends it to the casting director. Then face-to-face tests are held with the film crew. The final stage is ensemble auditions, when the actors go through the scene not alone, but as part of the cast. Each section talks about its own subtleties.

The theme of decoration is presented most effectively. The exhibition reproduces the entire basement from the teen film “The Puppeteer”. Shelves of mysterious books, mannequin parts, strange toys and skeletons are covered in artificial cobwebs, with intricate red threads hanging over them. One of the film’s actors said that this is exactly what the set of the film looked like, which was filmed in an abandoned Moscow basement. “At first it was scary, then we got used to it,” said Savely Albutov, who plays the Kid.

From scenery to light. Here you can find a plaster head, illuminated by professional equipment, and a remote control that controls the light. You can arrange different light in the frame yourself – cold, warm, subdued, etc. Next is the sound. Here, next to the sign “Silence, sound is on”, there are headphones in which you can hear how the film crew communicates behind the scenes. The curator of the exhibition, Yulia Davydova, admitted that it was extremely difficult to choose places where there were no obscene expressions. This section also talks about film superstitions. It is believed that filming in a wig brings success to actors, and that accidentally finding a crooked, rusty nail promises good luck. Under no circumstances should you clap the clapper outside the frame, otherwise you may end up with extra takes. It is strictly forbidden for anyone except the director to sit on the director’s chair. You can only enter the dressing room with your left foot. And sound engineers are not allowed to cut their hair or shave until the film is delivered, otherwise the sound will be screwed up. The best sign that promises a huge success for a film is a cat that accidentally gets into the frame.

We walk along the red carpet to the dressing room. You can sit in front of a mirror framed by lamps and try on virtual makeup in the reflection – a crown or wings. Here you will find both the usual makeup products (eye shadow, foundation, blush) and plastic makeup – one-piece masks that are put on the head. This, for example, is the image of a zombie and a vampire. Identical white shirts with different effects hang on the wall, for example, the bloody one was made with acrylic and grout, and the dirty one was stained with Vaseline and charcoal.

The finale includes three rare costumes from the films “Peter the Great” and “After the Rain on Thursday,” filmed in 1985. The velvet red dress, created by artist Eleonora Maklakova for the film about Peter I (and it was the first foreign mini-series filmed on the territory of the USSR), was worn by Vanessa Redgrave herself. The film received an Emmy Award. Surprisingly, the “precious” decor, imitating the gold trim of the dress, is made from candy wrappers.

Here you can learn about the latest technologies in cinema. A virtual production layout is presented. In front of us is a screen with a road and a toy car, behind which we can see the figures of the director and cameramen. From a certain point, it seems that the car is really driving along a snowy highway or forest potholes. “Such shooting is much cheaper than shooting on location or using chromakey. After all, on a green screen it’s difficult to immediately imagine what the picture will look like, but here, yes,” says Yulia Davydova. After such an immersion, you can relax on the sofa and watch on the big screen footage from films that have not yet been released.