Death Day
The Apology of Sergei Eisenstein
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A raw voice on a park bench as we sit and throw bread-crumbs to the swans. A desperate man in a brutal time. His words are fearful words to hear. His words are filtered through my thoughts of making films. “One must prepare oneself like a monk for the coming ordeal. The experience is predictable: arrest, torture, confession; accusation, doubt, apology. The pattern is always the same: their whole procedure is to make one doubt one’s better self. The forces against one, in such a situation, can be overwhelming: the disapproval of one’s superiors, the sense of betrayal of one’s colleagues, the disappointment of one’s family and friends – all will find their echoes in the inner voices of the undermining self. Wave after wave of persuasive voices will wash over your weary head, eventually speaking with your own familiar tongue. The undertow will be enormous, but you must resist being carried away. Your only life-line will be to never doubt who you are.”
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About the Book
On March 19, 1937, world-renowned Soviet film-maker, Sergei Eisenstein, appears before the All-Union Creative Conference of Workers in Soviet Cinematography, accused of having failed to create films which reflect the social and political orthodoxy of the Stalinist regime. Reeling from an unrelenting barrage of questions, accusations and threats, the film-maker struggles to respond to the dilemma which is faced by all artists in totalitarian states: how to reconcile one’s freedom of imagination and creativity with the conformity to the artistically-stifling orthodoxy which is demanded by the rulers of society? His response is an example of the ingenuity which is often displayed by artists in repressive societies.
About the Author
John Passfield explores the lives of characters who face a bombardment of imagery by the societies in which they live. For each of them, the challenge is to interpret their situations in order to be able to make positive changes in their lives. The challenge of recording our encounter with the imagery of our lives has led to a series of explorations in novel form.