Film Director, Theorist, Teacher. His theory of montage revolutionized the art of editing in motion pictures and its influence remains ubiquitous to this day. Tragically, due mainly to political pressures from Stalin's communist government, he was able to complete only seven feature films: "Strike" (1924), "The Battleship Potemkin" (1925), "October" (1928), "The Old And New" (1929), "Alexander Nevsky" (1938), "Ivan The Terrible, Part I" (1944), and "Ivan The Terrible, Part II" (1946). The last film was banned for many years and the third part of the intended "Ivan" trilogy was never made. As a gay, Jewish intellectual, Eisenstein was regarded with great suspicion by Stalin and his cronies and from 1929 to 1932 he tried unsuccessfully to make a career for himself in the west. Defeated, he returned to Moscow and occupied himself with teaching; he also married a woman named Pera Attasheva in 1934, though the couple never lived together. In 1946 Eisenstein suffered a near-fatal heart attack, and later that year he was targeted for criticism by Stalin, who was displeased with "Ivan The Terrible, Part II". Broken in body and spirit, Eisenstein died two weeks after his 50th birthday. Among his unfinished or unrealized films were two projects from his brief stay in Hollywood, "Sutter's Gold" and "An American Tragedy" (both 1930); "Que Viva Mexico!" (1931), footage he shot independently in Mexico that was later edited by others; and "Bezhin Meadow", an updated adaptation of a Turgenev story on which he worked from 1935 to 1937 before Stalin ordered filming to be stopped. Eisenstein's writings have been translated into over 20 languages and "The Battleship Potemkin" is still cited as among the ten greatest films ever made.

Film Director, Theorist, Teacher. His theory of montage revolutionized the art of editing in motion pictures and its influence remains ubiquitous to this day. Tragically, due mainly to political pressures from Stalin's communist government, he was able to complete only seven feature films: "Strike" (1924), "The Battleship Potemkin" (1925), "October" (1928), "The Old And New" (1929), "Alexander Nevsky" (1938), "Ivan The Terrible, Part I" (1944), and "Ivan The Terrible, Part II" (1946). The last film was banned for many years and the third part of the intended "Ivan" trilogy was never made. As a gay, Jewish intellectual, Eisenstein was regarded with great suspicion by Stalin and his cronies and from 1929 to 1932 he tried unsuccessfully to make a career for himself in the west. Defeated, he returned to Moscow and occupied himself with teaching; he also married a woman named Pera Attasheva in 1934, though the couple never lived together. In 1946 Eisenstein suffered a near-fatal heart attack, and later that year he was targeted for criticism by Stalin, who was displeased with "Ivan The Terrible, Part II". Broken in body and spirit, Eisenstein died two weeks after his 50th birthday. Among his unfinished or unrealized films were two projects from his brief stay in Hollywood, "Sutter's Gold" and "An American Tragedy" (both 1930); "Que Viva Mexico!" (1931), footage he shot independently in Mexico that was later edited by others; and "Bezhin Meadow", an updated adaptation of a Turgenev story on which he worked from 1935 to 1937 before Stalin ordered filming to be stopped. Eisenstein's writings have been translated into over 20 languages and "The Battleship Potemkin" is still cited as among the ten greatest films ever made.

Bio by: Bobb Edwards