Filmimuuseum
Photoexhibition “Filming of STALKER in Estonia and Afterlife of the Zone.”
Foreword to the photoexhibition
“Filming of STALKER in Estonia and Afterlife of the Zone.”
Arvo Iho
Film maker, photographer
and teacher.
In 1976 Andrei Tarkovsky was an Artistic Advisor of three young estonian filmmakers Peeter Urbla, Peeter Simm and Arvo Iho in Tallinnfilm studious.
In summer of 1977 Tarkovsky began to shoot STALKER in Tallinn and Jägala.
I asked Andrei Tarkovsky permission to take part in the shootings as the apprentice to learn the practical filmmaking from the top masters of Soviet Union. During the next 2 years I saw how slowly and with big complications this famous film was made.
Officially only staff photographer of Mosfilm studious Gennadi Murashko was aloud to take pictures on the shooting ground. But secretly I also took some photos and showed them to Andrey Tarkovsky. He liked my pictures and gave me permission to take photos when Murashko was not present.
When the shooting period of STALKER in Estonia was ending, I gave 35 photos (18 x 24 cm) to Andrei Tarkovsky as the present.
The same selection of prints I kept to myself also. Plenty of them were used as the illustrations for articles and books in later years.
The original negatives I packed carefully and put them in a folder. But moving from one place to another during the next 30 years I had no ideas where the negatives could be. So, I thought sadly, that they are lost forever.
In 1995 I visited with my son the the locations in Jägala where Stalker was shot.
From1996 many fans of Tarkovsky asked me to take them into places where the legendary film was shot. So, gradually I became kind of Stalker nr.2 who guided plenty of people from different countries to Zone. In the beginning they were mostly Russians and Finns, but later pilgrims from England, France, Germany and even from Australia were coming.
I took to Zone several film student groups also. In 2006 one of my students lost her twin sister. She asked me to take her to the place, where Stalker was praying in the film. So, she was laying down and praying in hope to get contact with her passed away twin sister.
In August 2015 I was looking through a piles of old negatives to select the illustrations for my book. And suddenly I found the original negatives from the shooting period of STALKER in good condition. I was overjoyed !
On Andrey Tarkovsky 85. birthday (4.4.2017) I made an exhibition in Moscow Film House.
On the first day there were more than 400 visitors and during a month more than 3000 persons visited the exhibition.
Moscow Film Museum and Russian Museum in St.Petersburg bought the copies of the photos shot in 1977-78 on the Stalker shooting ground.
Now I present these rare pictures for the lovers of Film Art in Estonian Film Museum
“Filming of STALKER in Estonia and Afterlife of the Zone.”
Arvo Iho
Film maker, photographer
and teacher.
In 1976 Andrei Tarkovsky was an Artistic Advisor of three young estonian filmmakers Peeter Urbla, Peeter Simm and Arvo Iho in Tallinnfilm studious.
In summer of 1977 Tarkovsky began to shoot STALKER in Tallinn and Jägala.
I asked Andrei Tarkovsky permission to take part in the shootings as the apprentice to learn the practical filmmaking from the top masters of Soviet Union. During the next 2 years I saw how slowly and with big complications this famous film was made.
Officially only staff photographer of Mosfilm studious Gennadi Murashko was aloud to take pictures on the shooting ground. But secretly I also took some photos and showed them to Andrey Tarkovsky. He liked my pictures and gave me permission to take photos when Murashko was not present.
When the shooting period of STALKER in Estonia was ending, I gave 35 photos (18 x 24 cm) to Andrei Tarkovsky as the present.
The same selection of prints I kept to myself also. Plenty of them were used as the illustrations for articles and books in later years.
The original negatives I packed carefully and put them in a folder. But moving from one place to another during the next 30 years I had no ideas where the negatives could be. So, I thought sadly, that they are lost forever.
In 1995 I visited with my son the the locations in Jägala where Stalker was shot.
From1996 many fans of Tarkovsky asked me to take them into places where the legendary film was shot. So, gradually I became kind of Stalker nr.2 who guided plenty of people from different countries to Zone. In the beginning they were mostly Russians and Finns, but later pilgrims from England, France, Germany and even from Australia were coming.
I took to Zone several film student groups also. In 2006 one of my students lost her twin sister. She asked me to take her to the place, where Stalker was praying in the film. So, she was laying down and praying in hope to get contact with her passed away twin sister.
In August 2015 I was looking through a piles of old negatives to select the illustrations for my book. And suddenly I found the original negatives from the shooting period of STALKER in good condition. I was overjoyed !
On Andrey Tarkovsky 85. birthday (4.4.2017) I made an exhibition in Moscow Film House.
On the first day there were more than 400 visitors and during a month more than 3000 persons visited the exhibition.
Moscow Film Museum and Russian Museum in St.Petersburg bought the copies of the photos shot in 1977-78 on the Stalker shooting ground.
Now I present these rare pictures for the lovers of Film Art in Estonian Film Museum