SOVIET TRADE MISSION IN TIANJIN ON CHINA’S FILM INDUSTRY IN THE 1920s (BASED ON ARCHIVAL DOCUMENTS)

The introduction of the new economic policy in Soviet Russia in 1921 contributed to the restoration and development of domestic production on a new basis. The creation of joint-stock companies of mixed type such as «Proletkino», Mezrabhpom-Rus, «Sovkino», etc. led to the growth of not only imports but also exports of film products to various countries including China. The traditional direction in this regard was Harbin developed by Russian entrepreneurs at the beginning of the 20th century and the rapidly growing industrial and cultural center of Shanghai was considered a new direction. In the presented article based on archival documents extracted from the State Archives of the Russian Federation, the Russian State Archives of Literature and Art and the Central State Archives of Moscow, the state of Chinese industry by the mid-20s is analyzed. The study is centered on a note from the Soviet Trade Mission in Tianjin revealed by the Central State Archive of Moscow. This document was prepared at the request of the State Cinema which regulated the distribution of domestic films and in its activities sought to enter the Asian market. Therefore, the reference contained information about little-known film companies created in the 1920s and operating mainly in Shanghai. The establishment of diplomatic and trade relations between the Soviet Union and the Chinese Republic in the mid-1920s opened up new opportunities for the developing cooperation including the export of Russian films to China which were supposed to provide real competition to American film productions However, the rupture of diplomatic relations between the Soviet Union and the Chinese Republic in late 1920s interrupted this process.