Seekers of Happiness
Iskateli schastya

aka Birobidzhan, A Greater Promise
USSR, 1934, 84 minutes, b&w
Russian with English subtitles
Directed by Vladimir Korsh-Sablin


RESTORED
with complete new English Subtitles by
The National Center for Jewish Film

Buy Now

Public Exhibition Format: Beta

Synopsis
LINE

During the late 1920s, many impoverished Jews searching for a better life made their way to Birobidzhan, the Soviet Jewish Autonomous Region on the Chinese border. This melodrama tells the story of a Jewish family's immigration to Birobidzhan and their experiences as settlers on a collective farm in the area.

While the family encounters hardships in adjusting to this new way of life (including son-in-law Pinya's greedy, misguided search for gold) their search for assimilation is ultimately shown as positive. While the film is essentially a Soviet propaganda piece emphasizing the utopian dream of Birobidzhan as a socialist Jewish homeland, the reality of the area was harsh and inhospitable.

Selected Screenings

Filmhaus Nürnberg; Nuremberg, Germany (2009)
Toronto Jewish Film Festival (2004)
New York Jewish Film Festival (1999)

NCJF Film Restoration
LINE

Restoration was completed with funding from the friends and family of Barney Ash with additional support by Brandeis University, The Massachusetts Cultural Council, The National Endowment for the Arts & Gosfilmofond

Credits
LINE

Director Vladimir Korsh-Sablin
Screenplay Iogan Zeltser & Grigori Kobets
Camera B. Ryabov, V. Pokrovsky
Sound Engineer N. Kosarev
Music Issac Dunayevsky
Consultant S.M. Mikhoels

1996 Restoration © The National Center for Jewish Film
Executive Director Sharon Pucker Rivo
Associate Director Miriam Saul Krant
Technical Director Rich Pontius
Translator Robert Szulkin
On-line Editor Sylvia Fuks Fried
Title Production Tina Schonning
Film Transfer Cinema Arts
Post Production CF Video

Cast
Venyamin Zuskin (Pinya)
Maria Blyumenthal-Tamarina (Dvoira)
L. Schmidt (Rosa)
L. Taits (Basya)
A. Karev (Natan)
S. Yarov (Korney)
B. Zhukovbsky (Korney's Father)
I. Byi-Brodsky (Shlyoma)

Home Use DVD: $29.95

Does not include Classroom or Library Use Rights or Public Performance Rights. More Information

LINE

Classroom/Library Use DVD: $250

Does not include Public Performance Rights. More Information

Digital Site Licensing (DSL) available - Contact us

Step down pricing for K-12 & public libraries may be available - Contact us

Arrange a screening - Contact us

 

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