Roman Karmen

Directing

Roman Karmen

Born — Died

1906-11-29 — 1979-04-29

Place of birth

Odessa, Russian Empire

Known for

Directing

Credits

39 titles

Roman Karmen (1906–1978) was a pioneering Soviet film director, war cinematographer, documentary filmmaker, journalist, screenwriter, pedagogue, and publicist. Born Efraim Leyzorovich Korenman, Karmen became one of the most prominent figures in Soviet cinema, known for his exceptional contributions to war documentation and his ability to capture history in the making. He began his career as a journalist before transitioning to filmmaking, where his early work focused on documenting revolutionary events and political developments. Karmen's most notable contributions were as a war cinematographer during the Spanish Civil War and World War II, where he filmed key moments from the frontlines, in…

Known for

Filmmakers for the Prosecution poster
6.0

In 1945, two young American soldiers, brothers Budd and Stuart Schulberg, are commissioned to collect filmed and recorded evidence of the horrors committed by the infamous Third Reich in order to prove Nazi war crimes during the Nuremberg trials (1945-46). The story of the making of Nuremberg: Its Lesson for Today, a paramount historic documentary, released in 1948.

Filmmakers for the Prosecution

2023

No artwork available
NR

No synopsis available yet.

Roman Karmen - Un cinéaste au service de la révolution

2002

The Caspian Story poster
3.0

A story of the exploits carried out by the oil technicians of Baku for the exploitation of the black gold deposit of the Caspian Sea.

The Caspian Story

1953

Cinerama's Russian Adventure poster
5.9

Following an introduction by Bing Crosby, the Cinerama screen widens for scenes of landscapes, cities, peoples, and entertainments of the Soviet Union. Highlights include the historic buildings and churches of Moscow, as the Kremlin; its subway and streets, a spring carnival, the seaside resorts on the Black Sea, a trip down the Volga River, skiers, a troika racing along a snow-covered road, a helicopter view of the North Pole, an Antarctic whale hunt, the capture of a wild boar in the Moyun-Kum of Central Asia, a race by reindeer-drawn sleds, divers in the Sea of Okhotsk, battling an octopus, the capture of antelopes, rafting logs down the Tisza River, and the development of new towns in Siberia. Other scenes include a visit to the Moscow Circus, where the renowned clown Oleg Popov performs, the dancing of the Moiseyev and Piatnitsky companies, and excerpts from the repertoire of the Bolshoi Theater Ballet.

Cinerama's Russian Adventure

1966

Our Cinema poster
9.0

No synopsis available yet.

Our Cinema

1940

The Magic Beam poster
NR

“The Magic Beam” is a film essay woven together from newsreels and documentary material from different decades, fragments of hundreds of non-fiction and fiction Soviet films of the 1910s-1960s.

The Magic Beam

1963

Film credits

Behind the camera

The Caspian Story poster
3.0

A story of the exploits carried out by the oil technicians of Baku for the exploitation of the black gold deposit of the Caspian Sea.

The Caspian Story

1953

The Caspian Story poster
3.0

A story of the exploits carried out by the oil technicians of Baku for the exploitation of the black gold deposit of the Caspian Sea.

The Caspian Story

1953

Cinerama's Russian Adventure poster
5.9

Following an introduction by Bing Crosby, the Cinerama screen widens for scenes of landscapes, cities, peoples, and entertainments of the Soviet Union. Highlights include the historic buildings and churches of Moscow, as the Kremlin; its subway and streets, a spring carnival, the seaside resorts on the Black Sea, a trip down the Volga River, skiers, a troika racing along a snow-covered road, a helicopter view of the North Pole, an Antarctic whale hunt, the capture of a wild boar in the Moyun-Kum of Central Asia, a race by reindeer-drawn sleds, divers in the Sea of Okhotsk, battling an octopus, the capture of antelopes, rafting logs down the Tisza River, and the development of new towns in Siberia. Other scenes include a visit to the Moscow Circus, where the renowned clown Oleg Popov performs, the dancing of the Moiseyev and Piatnitsky companies, and excerpts from the repertoire of the Bolshoi Theater Ballet.

Cinerama's Russian Adventure

1966

The Magic Beam poster
NR

“The Magic Beam” is a film essay woven together from newsreels and documentary material from different decades, fragments of hundreds of non-fiction and fiction Soviet films of the 1910s-1960s.

The Magic Beam

1963

The Magic Beam poster
NR

“The Magic Beam” is a film essay woven together from newsreels and documentary material from different decades, fragments of hundreds of non-fiction and fiction Soviet films of the 1910s-1960s.

The Magic Beam

1963

Nuremberg Trials poster
5.7

This riveting Russian documentary takes you inside the trials of the notorious German war criminals, brought to trial to account for their actions. The footage includes excerpts from the trials of many of the senior Nazis including Goebels and Goring.

Nuremberg Trials

1946

Leningrad in Struggle poster
8.0

Frustration of the German attempt to capture Leningrad, 1941, the besieging of the city.

Leningrad in Struggle

1943

Island Ablazed poster
NR

Documentary recounting the story of the Cuban Revolution and its impact on the young people of Cuba.

Island Ablazed

1961

Island Ablazed poster
NR

Documentary recounting the story of the Cuban Revolution and its impact on the young people of Cuba.

Island Ablazed

1961

No artwork available
NR

No synopsis available yet.

K Sobytijam v Ispanii

1936

Sea Conquerors poster
10.0

No synopsis available yet.

Sea Conquerors

1959

Sea Conquerors poster
10.0

No synopsis available yet.

Sea Conquerors

1959

Blazing Continent poster
NR

Roman Karmen's documentary on the political turmoil of 1970s Latin America.

Blazing Continent

1972

Blazing Continent poster
NR

Roman Karmen's documentary on the political turmoil of 1970s Latin America.

Blazing Continent

1972

One Day in Soviet Russia poster
5.5

On August 24th of 1940 a group of cameramen cross the immense territory of the Soviet Union before it was attacked by Nazi Germany, and capture multiple aspects of life in this new world.

One Day in Soviet Russia

1941

Spain poster
7.0

A feature-length documentary based on film reports from the Spanish civil war.

Spain

1939

Grenada, Grenada, My Grenada poster
9.0

The Spanish Civil War—newsreels filmed by Roman Karmen in 1937–38—was a defining experience: faces at war, privately witnessed trembling moments, the concrete reality of suffering, and indescribable anguish. Those images form the basis of the film, but the work also includes new footage and a diary of Karmen’s journey back to the old locations, accompanied by another great war reporter, the writer Konstantin Simonov.

Grenada, Grenada, My Grenada

1975

No artwork available
NR

No synopsis available yet.

Moskva–Karakum–Moskva

1933

Vietnam poster
NR

Story of the First Indochina War (1946-1954) in which Soviet Union has actively supported Vietnamese side.

Vietnam

1955

Vietnam poster
NR

Story of the First Indochina War (1946-1954) in which Soviet Union has actively supported Vietnamese side.

Vietnam

1955

No artwork available
NR

First feature motion picture photographed in Kinopanorama, the Soviet equivalent of Cinerama.

Great Is My Country

1958

No artwork available
NR

First feature motion picture photographed in Kinopanorama, the Soviet equivalent of Cinerama.

Great Is My Country

1958

Guest from the Island of Freedom poster
NR

A documentary about Fidel Castro's visit to the USSR from April 28 to June 3, 1963 and how the Cuban leader traveled throughout the Soviet Union for 40 days, from Severodvinsk to Khiva in Uzbekistan.

Guest from the Island of Freedom

1963

Comrade Berlin poster
NR

Documentary about East Berlin, commemorating 20th anniversary of German Democratic Republic formation.

Comrade Berlin

1969

Comrade Berlin poster
NR

Documentary about East Berlin, commemorating 20th anniversary of German Democratic Republic formation.

Comrade Berlin

1969

China Is Fighting poster
NR

A Soviet documentary by Roman Karmen and Mikhail Slutsky, assembled from 1938–41 footage in Yan’an and at the front, chronicling China’s anti-Japanese resistance—from Eighth Route Army actions to civilian mobilization and daily life in the base areas.

China Is Fighting

1941

The Great Patriotic War poster
9.0

This communist history film recalls the heroism of Soviet soldiers fighting the Nazis in World War II. Forty of the 236 cameramen used for the feature were killed during their mission filming the Red Army.

The Great Patriotic War

1965

The Great Patriotic War poster
9.0

This communist history film recalls the heroism of Soviet soldiers fighting the Nazis in World War II. Forty of the 236 cameramen used for the feature were killed during their mission filming the Red Army.

The Great Patriotic War

1965

No artwork available
NR

No synopsis available yet.

Албания

1946

No artwork available
NR

Made by the highly influential Russian cameraman Roman Karmen, this documentary vividly features Albanian life immediately after the communists came to power in 1944. The film is especially memorable since it’s missing much of the heavy socialist realism that marked Albanian doc making. Shortly after he completed the film, Karmen set off for Berlin to shoot the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany.

Albania

1945

No artwork available
NR

No synopsis available yet.

Death of the Commissary

1966

No artwork available
NR

No synopsis available yet.

Двадцать пятый сентябрь

1969