The Estonian Culture Film ( et, Eesti Kultuurfilm) was a state-subsidized movie studio established in

Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...

in 1931 by the Ministry of Culture. During the first years of existence, the studio mostly distributed films. The foundation for the professional Estonian film industry was created by training filmmakers in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

, where the professional production equipment for the studio was also purchased. The studio's sound equipment from the 1930s is preserved in the

Estonian Film Archives The National Archives of Estonia (NAE, et, Rahvusarhiiv) has been the centre of archival administration in Estonia since 1999. Organization NAE collects and preserves records documenting the history, culture, nationhood and social conditions ...

and is still in good working order even today. In 1936, Culture Film was transferred to the authority of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, at the same time the Estonian Film Archives were established. Thanks to the state archive, many of the movies produced by the Culture Film from 1936 to 1940 have survived, even though during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

many film negatives were destroyed. The Estonian Culture Film was mostly producing popular-scientific documentaries that recorded everyday life in Estonia. The titles of movies included ''Aviation show in Tallinn 28.08.1938'', ''International Sailing Yacht Race in Tallinn 10.-12. July 1938'', ''Views of Beautiful Viljandimaa'', ''Tallinn Before and Now'', ''Pictures of Saku'', etc. Some of the major filmmakers working for the Estonian Culture Film was

Konstantin Märska Konstantin Märska ( in Kuressaare, Saaremaa, Governorate of Livonia, Russian Empire – 30 August 1951 in Tallinn) was an Estonian cinematographer and film director. Märska is buried at the Rahumäe cemetery in Tallinn Tallinn () is the ...

. and

Theodor Luts Theodor Luts ( in Palamuse – 24 September 1980 in São Paulo) was an Estonian film director and cinematographer, brother of classic writer Oskar Luts. Theodor Luts was the first major figure of Estonian cinematography His '' Noored kotkad'' ( ...

References

Film production companies of Estonia Mass media in Tallinn {{estonia-stub