Fridrikh Ermler

Who was Fridrikh Ermler?

Fridrikh Markovich Ermler, was a Soviet film director, actor, and screenwriter. He was a four-time recipient of the Stalin Prize.

After studying pharmacology, he joined the Czarist army in 1917 and soon took part in the October revolution on the side of the Bolshevists. Captured and tortured by the White army, he only became a full party member at the end of the Civil War.

From 1923 to 1924 Ermler studied at the Cinema Academy. In 1932 he took part in creating one of the first Soviet talkies – the movie Vstrechny. He also was one of the founders of the Creative Association KEM He was one of the main figures in the Soviet propaganda movie industry whose main priority was glorifying Stalin and his successful leadership in the country’s progress.

A memorial plaque was placed on the house in Leningrad where he lived from 1930 to 1962.