Abstract: The purpose of this work is to identify the essence of cinema in the process of its formation in the pre–revolutionary period of time in comparison with its predecessor - photography. The author examines in detail the main properties of photography and the main properties of cinema, which do not coincide with each other, as well as their functioning in pre-revolutionary Russian society. The use of photography in mass illustrated magazines of that time is analyzed. Attention is paid to the formation of the properties of cinema at an early stage, when the audience of the first illusions was still mastering the perception of a new spectacle, which at the same time led to mastering the ability to read the language of screen reality. It is emphasized that mass cinema, in fact, used and developed the techniques of mass illustrated magazines. The special properties of cinematography related to the qualities of photogeny are also considered. The available documents on the functioning of the first cinemas are being studied. The issue of the emergence of the alienation effect in application to pre-revolutionary cinema, which leads to the mythologization of screen images, is discussed. The questions posed are studied on the basis of the art historical research method using the historical analysis of the available facts. What is new in this work is that the studied properties of photography and cinematography at an early stage allow us to develop the results obtained on the process of using archival photo and film documents in the modern cinematographic process.
On the basis of the conducted research, it was found that cinematography, in comparison with photography, has the property of serving to identify the lost historical reality with giving the on-screen reality the qualities of myth, since there are no reliable verification techniques for visual paintings on the cinema screen. Photography reproduces mirrored pictures of existence with a demonstration of the smallest details and details, but cinema overshadows it due to its inherent photogeny, which does not have adequate verbal descriptions. Cinematic photogeny helps to reproduce the breath of life itself on the screen.
In the course of the work, the empirical properties of photography and cinematography were studied with the disclosure of certain important historical circumstances that help to better understand their functioning in society.The results obtained contribute to a better understanding and decoding of pre-revolutionary film documents.

Abstract: The subject of research in this work is the so-called "funeral" documentaries, the creation of which was initiated before the revolution. At all times, they carried an important informational and semantic load. They fixed the authority of the deceased in the eyes of the mass public. There were public and private funerals. The ritual was canonical in nature, which was first resonantly violated during the funeral of Leo Nikolaevich Tolstoy, as evidenced by the preserved films. The article examines the features and modification of "funeral" films over time. They underwent a radical transformation with the advent of modern times after the February revolution of 1917 and the Bolsheviks came to power. A new funeral ritual with its own peculiarities and new meanings has been established on the cinema screen. The methodological basis of the research is a system analysis. The work used a cultural-historical method and an art historical analysis of preserved films and film materials. The novelty of this study is due to the fact that it has now become possible to use not only the most general impressions in the analysis, but to take a closer look and describe in sufficient detail the films and film documents being studied. This allows you to avoid annoying mistakes and inaccuracies in understanding and interpreting what you see. And it also reinforces the role of visual evidence in understanding history.
This article is devoted to an overview of how the paradigm of the funeral ritual vision has changed since pre-revolutionary times during the transition to a new world after the 1917 revolution, as well as to the identification of meanings. Her conclusions are connected with a fundamental change in the main idea of the funeral ceremony – from saying goodbye to the deceased before sending him on a long journey, a transition was made to the idea of sacrifice and swearing an oath to continue the struggle for a bright future.
The results of the research can be useful to professional documentary filmmakers, archivists and can be used in practical work and in training courses.

Abstract: The article deals with the question of how accurate is one or another filmed event, as well as its correspondence with the realities of time. Having analyzed a number of archival chronicle film footage, the author can be assured that multiple scenes were filmed using the staging elements, and some of them staged. This becomes noticeable in working with the early national newsreel of the World War I period. Although, separate scenes are authentic. The author attempts to identify which criterion and knowledge form the accuracy of the footage. The source of such knowledge usually imply the ordinary experience of the audience, previously seen films, books, and other types of mass media. In addition, in shooting the chronicle material, the camera operators try to follow the certain moral and ethical norms of the historical period. Staging elements in the early newsreel are traced not only on the example of the World War I period, but also the so-called imperial documentaries and film magazines of the era. It is noted that in separate cases, the camera operators during the film editing, used not only the linear methods, but also acquired the skills of essential film editing, which was inherent to the later period. It is concluded that the historical newsreel not always demonstrates the objective truth of an event; the filmed images often carry the organizational and prearranged character, beginning from staging separate scenes, ending with following to the established ritual of one or another ceremony.