| Summary: | Vadym Illenko’s creative work as a cinematographer and director was not yet considered in detail aside a few publications, including those that consider his early works as film director. Vadym Illenko’s filmography can be chronologically divided into several periods, which correspond to the periodization of Ukrainian cinema. The first, Thaw period was very intense for his creative output; it included seven films which Vadym Illenko has shot as a cinematographer (Journey to Youth, Simple Thing, Military Secret, Coming to You, Oleksa Dovbush, Chasing Two Hares, Only Statues Keep Silence), as well as two films he directed (Veronika’s Return, Southern Cross is Above Us). During this period, thanks to the cultural politics of the Thaw, the film industry was growing and new fresh forces entered cinema. The Thaw films often portrayed romantic persons as main characters; this was the case of Vadym Illenko’s directorial debut. This film affirms such traits as nobleness, selflessness, and sympathizes with the characters that are ready to prefer the uncomfortable conditions of life for the sake of moral comfort. In other words, this film fits to the ethos of the Thaw. Soviet cinema of 1950s was eager to address the topics of underdeveloped areas, and Vadym Illenko’s creative biography illustrates this trend. His films of the period featured adventures of alpinists, mysterious fortress in Crimea, marine rescue ship, virgin land, Antarctica. Vadym Illenko also took part in creating the most popular Ukrainian comedy of this period - Chasing Two Hares.The central for the second period of Vadym Illenko’s creative biography was the work on the film The Eve of Ivan Kupalo, which testified his innovative approach to cinematography. Particularly important was the complicated search for color chord, which was achieved only due to professional obsession of cinematographer. Vadym Illenko’s camera work in this film can be treated as an anthology of the best accomplishments of Ukrainian school of cinematography and is equal to the ...
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