Representation of Ukrainian Women Writers in Film Documents of 1950–1980

The purpose of the study is to consider the peculiarities of the representation of the images of Ukrainian women writers in film documents of the Soviet era; to outline their place among other receptive practices of the totalitarian state, to reveal their influence on the formation of cultural memory and identity of Ukrainians. Research methodology. The research is based on theoretical developments and concepts of foreign and domestic scientists in the field of source studies, film studies and memory studies. The work was carried out using general scientific methods of analysis and synthesis based on the principles of historicism and objectivity. The methods of source criticism, chronological, systematic, and typological analysis were also used when covering the topic. Scientific novelty. The study of the representation of the images of Ukrainian women writers in film documents of the Soviet era has not yet been the subject of scientific studies. The study of the processes and forms of conscious perpetuation of prominent figures of national culture is important and relevant, because it contributes to the understanding of how the past, present, and future of society and culture are seen in a certain historical context. Conclusions. In the Ukrainian Soviet film journalism of the 1950s–1980s, as well as in the cinematography of that time in general, the method of socialist realism prevailed. The totalitarian system viewed cinema first and foremost as a powerful means of propaganda and a tool for educating the Soviet man. Film biographies of Ukrainian women writers fit into the given representational canon and contain a number of obligatory ideologues. However, the analyzed film documents show that, despite censorship restrictions and total control over film production, the authors of the films made attempts with the help of various creative methods and techniques to weaken the ideological connotation of the represented figures and contribute to the preservation of their images in the collective memory as prominent representatives of Ukrainian culture, which influenced the formation and preservation of national identity.