Battleship Potemkin (1925/Russia) by Sergei Eisenstein

Sergei Eisenstein’s Battleship Potemkin Joins the Auteur Cinema Archive

The Auteur Cinema Archive is honored to include Battleship Potemkin (1925, Russia) by Sergei Eisenstein—an undisputed landmark of world cinema and a revolutionary synthesis of form and ideology. Though nearly a century old, Eisenstein’s film remains a towering example of political filmmaking, cinematic innovation, and auteur-driven vision that shaped the language of cinema itself.

Set during the 1905 Russian Revolution, the film follows the crew of the battleship Potemkin as they mutiny against their oppressive officers, sparking a broader uprising among the people of Odessa. The film builds to its legendary climax on the Odessa Steps, where civilians are massacred by Tsarist troops in a sequence that revolutionized film editing and remains one of the most studied and referenced scenes in cinema history.

Curator Kris De Meester on Eisenstein’s lasting impact:
"Battleship Potemkin is more than a film—it’s a cinematic manifesto. Eisenstein redefined the power of montage not just as a technique, but as an emotional and political force. Every frame carries intention, every cut reshapes meaning. It’s not just revolutionary in theme, but in construction. This is the very DNA of auteur cinema."

Commissioned by the Soviet government to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the 1905 revolution, Eisenstein delivered not propaganda but a masterwork of rhythm, composition, and montage theory. His use of juxtaposition to generate emotional and intellectual impact—what he termed “intellectual montage”—has influenced generations of filmmakers from Hitchcock and Kubrick to Scorsese and beyond.

By including Battleship Potemkin in the Auteur Cinema Archive, we celebrate a film that didn’t just reflect history—it changed it. Eisenstein's relentless pursuit of cinematic truth, through form and force, continues to challenge and inspire auteur filmmakers to this day.