It was founded on 23 May 1919 by the decision of the
Odesa Governorate's Executive Committee, from the remnants of cinema studios of
Myron Grossman,
Dmitriy Kharitonov, and Borisov. It was one of the first domestic film producers in the Soviet Union. At first, it was listed as "Political film section of political department and of 41st Division of the Red Army", and the first feature film filmed under this name was the "Spiders and flies." The original studios went into decline after the
Russian Civil War and the
Ukrainian War of Independence, as their owners emigrated, running from political prosecution. Grossman's film studio "Myrograph" existed in
Odesa since 1907 and was the oldest one recorded in Ukraine. In 1922, it was reorganized into the "Odesa Film Factory of the
All-Ukrainian Photo Cinema Administration (VUFKU)". The Odesa film studio was the VUFKU’s main production facility. In 1926, Vyacheslav Levandovskyi and Deviatkin created an animation studio of VUFKU. In 1930, VUFKU was reorganized into "Ukrainafilm" of "Soyuzkino" (Union-cinema). During the years of the
Second World War (
Eastern Front 1941-1945) it was part of the Tashkent Film Studio. By 1954 they returned to Odesa. In 1955, the Odesa Film Studio resumed its own film production. Director Alexander Gorky not only obtained permission to revive the studio, but also solved the personnel problem by inviting VGIK graduates — directors, cameramen, artists, and economists. Then the former students, who usually went for years as assistants, quickly got independent work. On November 26, 1956, the film by Felix Mironer and Marlen Khutsiev "Spring on Zarechnaya Street" was released, which became a significant event not only for the studio, but for the entire Soviet cinema. In 1979, the Odesa Film Studio released
The Meeting Place Cannot Be Changed. It is the highest grossing film of the studio, and was popular throughout the Soviet Union. In 2005, Odesa film studio was reorganized as a Closed Joint Stock Company, with the government owning the majority of shares. In 2019, the
National Bank of Ukraine issued a commemorative coin titled "100 years Odesa Film Studio" In addition, the main
Ukraine post service issued a special anniversary stamp dedicated to the Odesa film studio. ==Description==