Screening of The Little School Orchestra (1968), directed by Oleksandr Muratov and Mykola Rasheiev
The Little School Orchestra is a lyrical musical film about youth, friendship, a love of music, and Kyiv in the late 1960s.
About the Film
The story follows a small youth ensemble whose members are united by their love of music. They once studied together, gathered for rehearsals in the evenings, and spent their free time walking around Kyiv. Their paths gradually diverge, but their bond and love of music remain unchanged.
This atmospheric film is filled with nostalgia for youth. It was made on a minimal budget and features non-professional young actors—schoolchildren—in the leading roles. The film’s lightness is emphasised by its improvisational editing, shaped to the rhythm of music by the then-emerging composer Mikael Tariverdiev.
The film was completed in 1968—the year of the Prague Spring and the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia. Censors in Moscow saw a resemblance between its carefree young characters and the young participants in the Czech resistance. The film was banned, shelved, and its copies were destroyed.
Film scholar Yevhen Marholit later discovered a surviving negative. As a result, the film premiered more than forty years after it was made.
The screening is part of The History of Cinema in Ukraine programme, curated by Daria Badior and Sofia Doroshenko.
Screening Details
📅 23 September, 18:30
📍 Jam Factory Art Center, Auditorium
🎟️ Free admission with advance registration
Year: 1968
Country: Ukrainian SSR
Studio: Oleksandr Dovzhenko Film Studio
Running time: 58 minutes
Genre: Musical film, drama
Language: Russian
Subtitles: Ukrainian and English