Events in Spain

Events in Spain (K sobytiiam v Ispanii) is a Soviet-made, twenty-episode newsreel series directed by Roman Karmen and his assistant Boris Makaseev.  The newsreels were produced for a Soviet audience between August 1936 and July 1937. The first episode debuted in Soviet cities on 7 September 1936, supporting a nationwide humanitarian campaign in support of the Republic.

From the opening images captured at Irún, the series followed the main events of the war, introducing viewers to the principal actors in the drama while traversing much of Republican Spain.  The successive episodes gradually moved from the Northern front, where rebel troops commanded by General Mola were engaged against Republican militias, to the attack on the Basque port of San Sebastián.  Next, the series travelled to Catalonia, where the first International Brigades were being formed.  The autumn siege of the Alcázar de Toledo was given considerable attention, as was the Battle of Madrid.  The filmmakers then followed the Republic’s government to their new base in Valencia, before observing the Battle of Guadalajara. Along the way, Karmen and Makaseev took time out to teach the Soviet viewer about Spanish customs, including the bullfight.

Apart from witnessing key battles of the war, the audience also met Republican officials, popular heroes, and unnamed fighters, men and women alike. Dolores Ibárruri, José Diaz and Buenaventura Durruti made appearances in early episodes. General Enrique Lister, hero of the defense of Madrid, spoke to the camera in the 14th, while Juan Negrín delivered a speech in the 20th. Karmen and Makaseev themselves appeared, taking turns filming each other. 

From a technical standpoint, the series is uneven.  Events in Spain never achieved anything approaching uniformity or consistency.  Episode length ranged from under seven to over fifteen minutes – the difference between one reel and two.  The successful incorporation of sound also varied.  After the silent opener, the second installment included both voiceover and a rousing march, but the third episode, and several others, had no soundtrack at all.  The use of music in the series is at times quite effective. Snipits from Rimsky-Korsakov’s Capriccio Espagnol open five episodes. The seventh installment ends with a revolutionary song in Russian, the lyrics displayed on-screen and thus encouraging the audience to sing along, karaoke-like. For citizens of the USSR, Events in Spain was instrumental in converting a distant struggle into a cause of considerable importance.

DK