Leonid Alekseyevich Amalrik (Russian: Леонид
Ð Ð»ÐµÐºÑ ÐµÐµÐ²Ð¸Ñ‡ Рмальрик; 8 July [O.S. 25 June] 1905 â€"
22 October 1997) was a Soviet animator and animation director. He was
named Honoured Artist of the RSFSR in 1965.Leonid was born to Anna
Mikhailovna and Aleksey Ivanovich Amalrik, an employee and later an
inspector at the Russia insurance company, a distinguished citizen of
Moscow. His paternal great-grandfather Jean Amalric emigrated to
Russia from Avignon, France during the 19th century and founded a lace
manufactory, but later burned it down during his alcoholic
intoxication; both Amalric and his wife were killed in fire, only
their 4-year-old son also named Jean survived. He was raised by the
French colony in Moscow as Ivan Ivanovich Amalrik and later joined the
Albert Hübner's Calico Manufactory. He was married to the daughter of
the Moscow 1st class merchant Sergei Belkin from Old Believers. Among
their children was Sergei Amalrik, grandfather of the Soviet writer
and dissident Andrei Amalrik, and Aleksey Amalrik, father of
Leonid.Amalrik grew up in a wealthy family at the Arbat District in
the center of Moscow. At the age of seven he had to spend several
months in bed following the appendectomy. During that time he started
drawing and became addicted to it. He would later direct a
part-autobiographical film A Girl and an Elephant (1969) based on
Aleksandr Kuprin's story as well as his childhood memories. In 1925 he
entered the State College of Cinema to study for a set decorator. From
1926 to 1928 he worked at Mezhrabpom-Rus as a scene painter assistant
under Abram Room, Sergei Eisenstein and Vsevolod Pudovkin.In 1928 he
graduated from college and joined the Gosvoenkino studio as animator
along with Yuri Merkulov and Lev Atamanov. Their biggest project was
The First Cavalry (1929), a live-action animated film dedicated to the
1st Cavalry Army where Amalrik animated a large military map and
invented a number of original techniques in the process such as a
combination of stop motion and cutout animation. The movie remained
one of the Soviet box office leaders for several years. In 1930 he
returned to Mezhrabpomfilm where he co-directed his first
traditionally animated short Black and White (1932) with Ivan
Ivanov-Vano. It was based on the satirical poem by Vladimir Mayakovsky
and addresses issues of American racism in Cuba. After that he was
visited by the secret police who questioned him and searched his flat.
The director himself explained it as a result of his radical
formalistic "anti-Disney" vision and some featured themes that seemed
suspicious to them. In 1935 he moved to Mosfilm, and in a year the
animation department was transformed into Soyuzmultfilm.
Ð Ð»ÐµÐºÑ ÐµÐµÐ²Ð¸Ñ‡ Рмальрик; 8 July [O.S. 25 June] 1905 â€"
22 October 1997) was a Soviet animator and animation director. He was
named Honoured Artist of the RSFSR in 1965.Leonid was born to Anna
Mikhailovna and Aleksey Ivanovich Amalrik, an employee and later an
inspector at the Russia insurance company, a distinguished citizen of
Moscow. His paternal great-grandfather Jean Amalric emigrated to
Russia from Avignon, France during the 19th century and founded a lace
manufactory, but later burned it down during his alcoholic
intoxication; both Amalric and his wife were killed in fire, only
their 4-year-old son also named Jean survived. He was raised by the
French colony in Moscow as Ivan Ivanovich Amalrik and later joined the
Albert Hübner's Calico Manufactory. He was married to the daughter of
the Moscow 1st class merchant Sergei Belkin from Old Believers. Among
their children was Sergei Amalrik, grandfather of the Soviet writer
and dissident Andrei Amalrik, and Aleksey Amalrik, father of
Leonid.Amalrik grew up in a wealthy family at the Arbat District in
the center of Moscow. At the age of seven he had to spend several
months in bed following the appendectomy. During that time he started
drawing and became addicted to it. He would later direct a
part-autobiographical film A Girl and an Elephant (1969) based on
Aleksandr Kuprin's story as well as his childhood memories. In 1925 he
entered the State College of Cinema to study for a set decorator. From
1926 to 1928 he worked at Mezhrabpom-Rus as a scene painter assistant
under Abram Room, Sergei Eisenstein and Vsevolod Pudovkin.In 1928 he
graduated from college and joined the Gosvoenkino studio as animator
along with Yuri Merkulov and Lev Atamanov. Their biggest project was
The First Cavalry (1929), a live-action animated film dedicated to the
1st Cavalry Army where Amalrik animated a large military map and
invented a number of original techniques in the process such as a
combination of stop motion and cutout animation. The movie remained
one of the Soviet box office leaders for several years. In 1930 he
returned to Mezhrabpomfilm where he co-directed his first
traditionally animated short Black and White (1932) with Ivan
Ivanov-Vano. It was based on the satirical poem by Vladimir Mayakovsky
and addresses issues of American racism in Cuba. After that he was
visited by the secret police who questioned him and searched his flat.
The director himself explained it as a result of his radical
formalistic "anti-Disney" vision and some featured themes that seemed
suspicious to them. In 1935 he moved to Mosfilm, and in a year the
animation department was transformed into Soyuzmultfilm.
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