A work in constant progress (and occasional regress).
Alias:
Р. Кармен
Роман Кармэн
Birthplace:
Odessa, Russian Empire
Born:
November 29, 1906
Died:
April 29, 1979
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, including the Soviet Union’s involvement in the Spanish war and the Nazi invasions. He was a close collaborator with Soviet authorities and a key figure in Soviet newsreels, documenting not only the war but also the victories and cultural milestones of the USSR. Karmen’s work was instrumental in shaping Soviet film as a tool for propaganda and national identity, using his camera to amplify the Soviet narrative of heroism, triumph, and unity. He was also involved in film education, teaching at VGIK (All-Russian State Institute of Cinematography) and inspiring future generations of filmmakers. Karmen's legacy as a documentarian is cemented in his works, which captured pivotal moments in Soviet history and continue to serve as an important visual record of the 20th century.
Additional Photography:
1943 Oryol Battle
Archival Footage Coordinator:
1943 Oryol Battle
1963 To Die in Madrid
Camera Operator:
1937 Spain 1936
1942 To Protect Native Moscow
1943 Oryol Battle
1946 Film Documents of the Atrocities of the German Fascist Invaders
1952 USSR Air Fleet Day
1953 The Caspian Story
1961 Island Ablazed
1963 To Die in Madrid
Cinematography:
1937 Spain 1936
1942 To Protect Native Moscow
1943 Oryol Battle
1944 Majdanek - Cemetery of Europe
1946 Film Documents of the Atrocities of the German Fascist Invaders
1952 USSR Air Fleet Day
1953 The Caspian Story
1961 Island Ablazed
1963 To Die in Madrid
Director:
1933 Moskva–Karakum–Moskva
1936 K Sobytijam v Ispanii
1937 Spain 1936
1939 Spain
1941 China Is Fighting
1941 One Day in Soviet Russia
1942 Leningrad in Struggle
1942 To Protect Native Moscow
1943 Oryol Battle
1944 Majdanek - Cemetery of Europe
1945 Albania
1946 Film Documents of the Atrocities of the German Fascist Invaders
1946 Nuremberg Trials
1952 USSR Air Fleet Day
1953 The Caspian Story
1955 Vietnam
1958 Great Is My Country
1959 Sea Conquerors
1961 Island Ablazed
1963 Guest from the Island of Freedom
1963 The Magic Beam
1963 To Die in Madrid
1965 The Great Patriotic War
1966 Cinerama's Russian Adventure
1966 Death of the Commissary
1969 Comrade Berlin
1969 Двадцать пятый сентябрь
1972 Blazing Continent
1975 Grenada, Grenada, My Grenada
Director of Photography:
1933 Moskva–Karakum–Moskva
1936 K Sobytijam v Ispanii
1937 Spain 1936
1939 Spain
1941 China Is Fighting
1941 One Day in Soviet Russia
1942 Leningrad in Struggle
1942 To Protect Native Moscow
1943 Oryol Battle
1944 Majdanek - Cemetery of Europe
1945 Albania
1946 Film Documents of the Atrocities of the German Fascist Invaders
1946 Nuremberg Trials
1952 USSR Air Fleet Day
1953 The Caspian Story
1955 Vietnam
1958 Great Is My Country
1959 Sea Conquerors
1961 Island Ablazed
1963 Guest from the Island of Freedom
1963 The Magic Beam
1963 To Die in Madrid
1965 The Great Patriotic War
1966 Cinerama's Russian Adventure
1966 Death of the Commissary
1969 Comrade Berlin
1969 Двадцать пятый сентябрь
1972 Blazing Continent
1975 Grenada, Grenada, My Grenada
Writer:
1933 Moskva–Karakum–Moskva
1936 K Sobytijam v Ispanii
1937 Spain 1936
1939 Spain
1941 China Is Fighting
1941 One Day in Soviet Russia
1942 Leningrad in Struggle
1942 To Protect Native Moscow
1943 Oryol Battle
1944 Majdanek - Cemetery of Europe
1945 Albania
1946 Film Documents of the Atrocities of the German Fascist Invaders
1946 Nuremberg Trials
1952 USSR Air Fleet Day
1953 The Caspian Story
1955 Vietnam
1958 Great Is My Country
1959 Sea Conquerors
1961 Island Ablazed
1963 Guest from the Island of Freedom
1963 The Magic Beam
1963 To Die in Madrid
1965 The Great Patriotic War
1966 Cinerama's Russian Adventure
1966 Death of the Commissary
1969 Comrade Berlin
1969 Двадцать пятый сентябрь
1972 Blazing Continent
1975 Grenada, Grenada, My Grenada
Director:
1978 The Unknown War
Most data and links to images for the Movies section come from TheMovieDB (TMDB).
Additional data for Film Titles come from The Open Movie Database (OMDb).
At least one plug-in comes from IMDb.
Data are -- hey, it's a plural -- subject to the limitations of their sources. (For example, TMDB search results currently max out at 20.) I am limiting myself to free data sources for now. (No, a "free trial" is not free.)
While much of the above data are retrieved directly from outside APIs and other such sources, data from American Film Institute (AFI) and British Film Institute (BFI) were manually entered the old fashioned way into a MySQL database. Re BFI I took the following liberties:
Regarding profile removals and data corrections:
Filtering is applied here to film projects flagged as "adult" by TheMovieDB. Pending "popular demand" I am contemplating a login and profile system with preferences (such as whether to allow adult images to appear) and permissions (such as data entry).
Whereas the overall purpose of this website is to serve as a personal demo/portfolio/workshop of web and data skills, this Movies section is not meant to compete with or substitute for far more definitive movie websites.
Whether or not he still clings to an award which he won in 1986 as a film critic for his college's newspaper, Jeffrey Hartmann is not responsible for the texts of overviews and biographies supplied by external data sources.