Identity construction in children's cinema: the experience of cinema in the USSR and the practice of modern Russia

Abstract

The article is devoted to the formation spectator-child's identity problem by cinematography means. The authors rely on the social constructionism position. The position allows us to talk about the socio-cultural reality construction by cinematography means: about the creation of an artistic and symbolic world model. The values or ideology system guidelines developed within the framework of the USSR ideology and meeting the tasks socio-political, socio-economic structure is the model based. Cinematography, namely children's cinema, aimed at an educational role, broadcasts these attitudes, including the values of patriotism, diligence, collectivism, etc. In this way, the forming the child's identity (Soviet identity) process is “launched”. After the USSR collapse, cinematography develops under the globalization processes influence: there is a rejection of ideology and the spread of postmodern cultural values. The development of the information environment and the change in the socio-economic system dictate the development of a new language of cinema, which is becoming an actual research field. The expose of the child-viewer's constructing identity specifics on the basis of a comparative the Soviet era and modern Russia children's films is the study purpose according to the authors of the research. The study was conducted on the material of films with similar fairy tale plots, which are analyzed from the position of the following parameters: plot construction, the hero image, the expression used means, as well as the value-semantic attitudes of culture transmitted by the artistic and figurative film production system. The study showed, that modern cinema, unlike the USSR cinema, demonstrates a rejection of binary thinking, does not claim to be clear on the author's position and establish any final meaning of the work, refers to new topics (consumer society, feminism, power) and values (individualism, hedonism, priority of the material over the spiritual).The visual aspect prevails among artistic means to the detriment of the verbal and semantic aspects for a reason the digital culture and computer graphics development. A new socio-cultural reality is constructed, and, consequently, a new child identity in such a cinema space in this way. The “new viewer” is forced to navigate in the meanings multiple stream and images, relying on his own unstable experience.