Vladimir Yakovlevich Motyl (russian: Влади́мир Я́ковлевич Моты́ль; 26 June 1927 – 21 February 2010) was a

Soviet 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 nation ...

and

Belarus Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by ...

ian film director and screenwriter.Владимир Яковлевич Мотыль
/ref> Vladimir Motyl was born in

Lepiel Lyepyel ( be, Ле́пель, Liepieĺ; pl, Lepel; russian: Ле́пель, Lepel, ; yi, ליעפּליע, Li'epli'e) is a town located in the center of the Lyepyel Raion (district) in the Vitebsk Province of Belarus near Lyepyel Lake. Lyepy ...

. His father was a Polish émigré, who was arrested in 1930 and sent to Solovki and died there the following year. Many of his other relatives suffered similar treatment. Vladimir and his mother were exiled to the Northern

Urals The Ural Mountains ( ; rus, Ура́льские го́ры, r=Uralskiye gory, p=ʊˈralʲskʲɪjə ˈɡorɨ; ba, Урал тауҙары) or simply the Urals, are a mountain range that runs approximately from north to south through western ...

, where he became fascinated in theatre and cinema, and later graduated from the Sverdlovsk Theatrical Institute. For about 10 years he worked in various theatres in the Urals and

Siberia Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive region, geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a ...

and eventually became chief director of Sverdlovsk

Young Spectator's Theatre Young Spectator's Theatre (Театр Юного Зрителя, ТЮЗ) was a standard name of a theatre for children and youth in many cities of the Soviet Union, usually referred to by this abbreviation: тюз, TYuZ (sometimes translated as "T ...

. He decided to start afresh in cinema, despite having no technical qualifications. Eventually he directed his first film, ''Children of

Pamirs The Pamir Mountains are a mountain range between Central Asia and Pakistan. It is located at a junction with other notable mountains, namely the Tian Shan, Karakoram, Kunlun, Hindu Kush and the Himalaya mountain ranges. They are among the world ...

'' (1963) (''Detyi Pamira/Дети Памира'') in

Tajikistan Tajikistan (, ; tg, Тоҷикистон, Tojikiston; russian: Таджикистан, Tadzhikistan), officially the Republic of Tajikistan ( tg, Ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон, Jumhurii Tojikiston), is a landlocked country in Centr ...

. This work was met with public success, as well as earning him the State Prize of

Tajik SSR The Tajik Soviet Socialist Republic,, ''Çumhuriji Şūraviji Sotsialistiji Toçikiston''; russian: Таджикская Советская Социалистическая Республика, ''Tadzhikskaya Sovetskaya Sotsialisticheskaya Resp ...

(1964), and the

title A title is one or more words used before or after a person's name, in certain contexts. It may signify either generation, an official position, or a professional or academic qualification. In some languages, titles may be inserted between the f ...

honorary citizen Honorary citizenship is a status bestowed by a city or other government on a foreign or native individual whom it considers to be especially admirable or otherwise worthy of the distinction. The honour usually is symbolic and does not confer an ...

Dushanbe Dushanbe ( tg, Душанбе, ; ; russian: Душанбе) is the capital and largest city of Tajikistan. , Dushanbe had a population of 863,400 and that population was largely Tajik. Until 1929, the city was known in Russian as Dyushambe (ru ...

(1977). His next film '' Zhenya, Zhenechka and Katyusha'' (1967) (''Женя, Женечка и "Катюша"''), a romantic comedy/drama set in 1944, was warmly accepted by the public as well, but earned the displeasure of the Soviet

agitprop Agitprop (; from rus, агитпроп, r=agitpróp, portmanteau of ''agitatsiya'', "agitation" and ''propaganda'', " propaganda") refers to an intentional, vigorous promulgation of ideas. The term originated in Soviet Russia where it referred ...

for "disrespectful" treatment of the

second world war 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 opposi ...

theme, and the director fell into disfavor. Nevertheless, he was invited to direct a film which was to become one of the most popular Soviet

cult films A cult film or cult movie, also commonly referred to as a cult classic, is a film that has acquired a cult following. Cult films are known for their dedicated, passionate fanbase which forms an elaborate subculture, members of which engage i ...

, the " Red Western" (or technically, " Ostern") ''

White Sun of the Desert ''White Sun of the Desert'' (russian: Белое солнце пустыни, Beloye solntse pustyni) is a 1970 Soviet Ostern film. Its blend of action, comedy, music and drama, as well as memorable quotes, made it highly successful at the Russi ...

''. Notably, this film has a strong theme about exile, as its protagonist, Sukhov finds himself waylaid in Central Asia when trying to return home. For his work, Motyl received numerous awards.

Filmography

*1963: ''Children of

'' (''Дети Памира''), film director *1967: '' Zhenya, Zhenechka and Katyusha'' (''Женя, Женечка и Катюша''), playwright, film director *1969: ''

'' (''Белое солнце пустыни''), film director *1975: ''

The Captivating Star of Happiness ''The Captivating Star of Happiness'' (russian: Звезда пленительного счастья, Zvezda plenitelnogo schastya, The Star of Fascinating Happiness) is a 1975 Soviet historical drama. The title is an allusion to a line from a ...

'' (''Звезда пленительного счастья'') (the title is a line from a verse by

Pushkin Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin (; rus, links=no, Александр Сергеевич ПушкинIn pre-Revolutionary script, his name was written ., r=Aleksandr Sergeyevich Pushkin, p=ɐlʲɪkˈsandr sʲɪrˈɡʲe(j)ɪvʲɪtɕ ˈpuʂkʲɪn, ...

), playwright, film director *1980: ''

Forest A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...

'' (''Лес''), playwright, film director *1984: ''Unbelievable Bet'' (''Невероятное пари''), film director *1987: ''My Best Respects'' (''Честь имею''), playwright *1991: ''Let's Part while we're alright'' (''Расстанемся, пока хорошие''), playwright, film director *1993: ''Okhlamon'' (''Охламон''), playwright, play director *1996: ''Nesut menya koni'' (''Несут меня кони''), playwright, film director, music for the songs *2009: ''Crimson Colour of the Snowfall'' (''Багровый цвет снегопада''), playwright, film director, music for the songs

Awards

*1996: Order of Honour for the film ''White Sun of the Desert'' *1998: State Prize of the Russian Federation category Literature and Arts for year 1997, for the film ''White Sun of the Desert'' *2003:

Honorary title A title is one or more words used before or after a person's name, in certain contexts. It may signify either generation, an official position, or a professional or academic qualification. In some languages, titles may be inserted between the f ...

People's Artist People's Artist is an honorary title in the Soviet Union, Union republics, in some other Eastern bloc states (and communist states in general), as well as in a number of post-Soviet states, modeled after the title of the People's Artist of the U ...

of Russian Federation

Death

On 5 February 2010, Vladimir Motyl was at home alone when he felt ill. On the same day he was hospitalized in the city clinical hospital No. 67. Initially, he was suspected of a stroke, but in the hospital doctors found a fracture of the cervical vertebrae and pneumonia.Известный режиссёр Владимир Мотыль скончался в воскресенье в Москве
/ref> On 21 February 2010 at approximately 11 pm Vladimir Motyl died at the age of 83.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Motyl, Vladimir 1927 births 2010 deaths People from Lepiel Belarusian Jews Russian people of Belarusian descent Russian Jews Soviet Jews Belarusian film directors Soviet film directors Academic staff of High Courses for Scriptwriters and Film Directors Belarusian people of Polish descent People's Artists of Russia Recipients of the Order of Honour (Russia) Ural State University alumni