''We Are from Jazz'' (russian: Мы из джаза, My iz dzhaza) is a 1983

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...

musical film Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the characters are interwoven into the narrative, sometimes accompanied by dancing. The songs usually advance the plot or develop the film's characters, but in some cases, they serve merely as breaks ...

Karen Shahnazarov Karen Georgievich Shakhnazarov, PAR (russian: Каре́н Гео́ргиевич Шахназа́ров; born 8 July 1952) is a Soviet and Russian filmmaker, producer and screenwriter. He became the Director General of Mosfilm studios in 1998. ...

Plot

A student is expelled from music school because he loves

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

, and jazz at that time (the film depicts the 1920s) is the kind of music that represents American capitalism. He hires two street musicians to form a band, and goes from one city to another trying to gain fame.

Cast

Igor Sklyar Igor Borisovich Sklyar (russian: Игорь Борисович Скляр; born 18 December 1957) is a Russian actor and singer. He has appeared in over 30 films since 1974. He starred in the 1994 film, '' The Year of the Dog'', which won the S ...

as Konstantin Ivanov *

Aleksandr Pankratov-Chyorny Aleksandr Vasilyevich Pankratov-Chyorny (russian: Алекса́ндр Васи́льевич Панкра́тов-Чёрный; born 28 June 1949) is a Russian actor and film director. He appeared in more than seventy films since 1978. He was aw ...

as Stepan Arkadyevich Grushko * Nikolai Averyushkin as Georgy (Jora) Ryabov *

Pyotr Shcherbakov Pyotr Ivanovich Shcherbakov (russian: Пётр Ива́нович Щербако́в; 21 July 1929 – March 16, 1992) was a Soviet film and theater actor. People's Artist of the RSFSR (1980). Member of the CPSU since 1955. Biography Born July ...

as Ivan Ivanovich Bavurin *

Yelena Tsyplakova Yelena or Jelena is a feminine given name. It is the Russian form of Helen, written Елена in Russian. Notable people called Yelena *Yelena Afanasyeva (born 1967), former Russian athlete who competed in the 800 metres *Yelena Vladimirovn ...

as Katya Bobrova (aka Isabella Fox) *

Yevgeniy Yevstigneyev Yevgeny Aleksandrovich Yevstigneyev (russian: Евгений Александрович Евстигнеев; 9 October 1926 — 4 March 1992) was a prominent Soviet and Russian stage and film actor, theatre pedagogue, one of the founders of the ...

as Papa, pickpocket and jazz lover *

Leonid Kuravlyov Leonid Vyacheslavovich Kuravlyov (russian: Леонид Вячеславович Куравлёв; 8 October 1936 – 30 January 2022) was a Soviet and Russian film actor. He became a People's Artist of the RSFSR in 1976. Early life Kuravlyov w ...

as Samsonov, head of the Association of proletarian musicians *

Borislav Brondukov Boryslav Mykolayovych Brondukov ( uk, Борислáв Миколáйович Брондукóв; russian: Борислав Николаевич Брондуков; 1 March 1938 – 10 March 2004) was a Ukrainian film character actor, People's Ar ...

as fake of Captain Kolbasyev *

Larisa Dolina Larisa Aleksandrovna Dolina (russian: link=no, Лариса Александровна Долина, , née Kudelman, Кудельман, formerly Mionchinskaya, Миончинская; born 10 September 1955) is an Azerbaijani-born prominent Rus ...

as Clementine Fernandez, Cuban singer *

Yuri Vasilyev Yury Nikolayevich Vasilyev (russian: Ю́рий Никола́евич Васи́льев; October 12, 1939 — June 4, 1999) was a Soviet and Russian stage and film actor. He is best known for film roles in '' The Journalist'' (1967) and ''Mo ...

as Orlov, jazz band leader *

Alexander Pyatkov Alexander Alexandrovich Pyatkov (russian: Александр Александрович Пятков; born July 31, 1950, Moscow) is a Soviet and Russian film and theater actor. In 2006 he was awarded the title People's Artist of Russia. Selecte ...

as Yaryshkin, waiter

Interesting facts

* The film was distribution leader in the

USSR The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...

in 1983 with 17.1 million viewers. * The historical records of music of the 1920s were used in the filming. * The role of Kostya Ivanov was originally intended for

Dmitry Kharatyan Dmitry Vadimovich Kharatyan (born 21 January 1960) is a Soviet and Russian actor of Armenian descent, People's Artist of Russia. Was born in Olmaliq, Uzbek SSR on 21 January 1960. His debut as an actor came in Vladimir Menshov's ''Practical Jok ...

. Yevgeny Dvorzhetsky and Mikhail Shirvindt were also auditioned for the role. *

Lyubov Polishchuk Lyubov Grigoryevna Polishchuk (russian: Любо́вь Григо́рьевна Полищу́к; 21 May 1949 – 28 November 2006) was a popular Russian actress. She was born in the Siberian city of Omsk. After school she decided to become an ...

was auditioned for the role of Clementine. *

Nikolai Yeremenko Jr. Nikolai Nikolaevich Yeremenko Jr. ( be, Мікалай Мікалаевіч Яроменка (малодшы), (russian: Никола́й Никола́евич Ерёменко-мла́дший; 14 February 1949 — 27 May 2001) was a Soviet and ...

and

Leonid Yarmolnik Leonid Isaakovich Yarmolnik (russian: Леони́д Исаа́кович Ярмо́льник; born January 22, 1954) is a Soviet and Russian actor and film producer. Biography Was born on January 22, 1954, in Grodekovo, Primorsky Krai, where ...

were auditioned for the role of Stepan. * The operator Vladimir Shevtsik sings for the role of Alexander Pankratov-Cherny in the film. *

was in the fifth month of pregnancy during the filming.

References

External links

* *
''We Are From Jazz''
online at official

Mosfilm Mosfilm (russian: Мосфильм, ''Mosfil’m'' ) is a film studio which is among the largest and oldest in the Russian Federation and in Europe. Founded in 1924 in the USSR as a production unit of that nation's film monopoly, its output incl ...

site (with English subtitles) 1983 films Mosfilm films 1980s musical comedy films 1980s Russian-language films Films directed by Karen Shakhnazarov Russian musical comedy films Soviet musical comedy films 1983 comedy films {{musical-comedy-film-stub