Battleship Potemkin

Battleship Potemkin is an extremely iconic film in terms of media and its production. It was produced by Sergei Eisenstein in 1925. The most memorable scene is called 'The Odessa Staircase' and it is very significant for media research and influences.

Here is an example of some of the montages shown in the Odessa Steps sequence. Montage is a popular artistic choice in movies and television. It enables the filmmaker to emote a feeling while using minimal to no dialogue. A montage is a series of shots edited together to drive a point and advance the plot in a way dialogue couldn't. It is useful when abbreviating time because weeks and months can be condensed into seconds and minutes on screen. The audience then have to use gestalt to logically piece together the missing, unrevealed information.

Eisenstein is often considered to be the "godfather of montage" because it was him that, as a filmmaker, thought montage was the essence of the cinema and he believed that editing went beyond exposition. It was Eisenstein who believed that a "collision" of independent shots could manipulate audience emotions through a montage of images. This was an exciting technique in the 1910s and 1920s as it was new, however it was primitive so this made it more difficult to create effectively. This was during the silent era. Battleship Potemkin is credited to this day as opening filmmakers' eyes to montage. This Russian propaganda film was directed by Eisenstein and it was something unlike anything seen in the cinema at that time. In the scene of The Odessa Steps a group of soldiers march down an outdoor flight of stairs while villagers attempt to flee the army by going up the stairs. As they run up the stairs, the soldiers begin opening fire on the villagers. As those unhurt attempt to escape, another group of soldiers meets them at the bottom of the steps and opens fire. The filming and editing techniques in this sequence are what made it so groundbreaking.

When watching this sequence in class I noted down some of the factors I found most interesting about it:

• No narrative
• Music controlling the pace and emotions
• Mass of people emphasises importance of battleship returning- support of country
• Teamwork
• Elation
• Celebration
• Contrast of classes, ability and ages
• Turn around in action- enemy arrives- no mercy
• Emotion displayed through leading female for her child
• Tension rises
• Music drops- moment of hope

I found this hard-hitting despite how long ago it was produced. It was interesting to see a completely unique film type. Additionally I can see where filmmakers have been inspired and used ideas from this film originally for their more modern adaptations. For my film I think that I will find Sergei Eisenstein's technique useful in particular sections as it is good for evoking emotions from the audience. I plan to experiment with this technique to drive and advance the point in my short film. Whether I use montage within my short film will depend on how effective the footage I take is, but I shall definitely be considering it.