Peasants

The film Peasants (Krestyanye), directed by Fridrikh Ermler and released in 1935, is a significant work that addresses the Soviet policy of collectivization. The film is a grand-scale depiction of this tumultuous period, focusing on the experiences of the peasantry as they were forced to abandon their individual farms and join large collective farms, known as kolkhozy. Ermler's approach is noted for its warmth and sympathy in mirroring peasant folkways amidst the radical societal changes. Collectivization, pursued intensively between 1929 and 1933, aimed to transform traditional agriculture and reduce the economic power of prosperous peasants, known as kulaks. This policy was implemented alongside the rapid industrialization of the Soviet Union.12