Anastasia (film, 2008)

In the 1980s, APN correspondent Nikolai Sologubovsky worked in Tunisia . There he met a woman who was called the “angel of the Russian squadron,” Anastasia Shirinskaya. For many years, the journalist recorded the memories of Anastasia Alexandrovna, first on a tape recorder, then on a video camera ^[1] .

In 2007, Sologubovsky showed the script ^{[2] of the} future film “Anastasia” to director Viktor Lisakovich . The result of their joint work was not only the recording of a 50-hour interview with the main character, but also the collection of unique photo and video materials found in the state archives and private collections of Tunisia, France and Russia ^[1] .

The painting is based on the memoirs of Anastasia Shirinskaya-Manstein, who was a witness to the exodus of the ships of the Russian squadron from the Crimea . In the fall of 1920, she was 8 years old, and the girl remembered the Crimean evacuation for her whole life. Nearly 150,000 people were forced to leave Russia.

In December, 33 Russian ships arrived in Tunisia, which at that time was under the protectorate of France. Cabins for refugees became cabins. Anastasia, along with her mother and sisters, lived on the battleship " George the Victorious ." They practically did not go ashore. Sometimes the French sent sugar and flour on board, and the Christmas trees were always passed on New Year's Eve. To get to school, the children just had to climb up the ladder to the admiral's cabin. Mathematics and astronomy were taught to students by Rear Admiral Mikhail Berens .

The crews supported the ships in a state of full combat readiness. In 1921, the Sevastopol Marine Corps was created on the African coast, releasing officers. Shirinskaya recalls that during the holidays, adults necessarily proclaimed a toast: "For an early return to Russia."

In the fall of 1924, France recognized the USSR. Now the fate of the ships in Bizerte had to deal with a special commission. In October, Order No. 147 on the disbandment of the Russian Squadron was published.

I consider it my duty to note the calm dignity with which the personnel met this last and most difficult test. I take this opportunity to bring heartfelt gratitude to my colleagues and associates and wish them success in arranging their personal lives until they return home happily, the hope for which we all live ^[3] .

- Rear Admiral Mikhail Berens

Then there was the descent of the St. Andrew flag and the arrival in Bizert of the Soviet technical delegation, which included the brother of Mikhail Behrens - Eugene. The brothers who found themselves on opposite sides of the barricades during the Civil War did not meet in Tunisia. Negotiations broke down, and subsequently the ships that were part of the Russian squadron were scrapped.

Having removed their marine uniforms, officers and their families began to settle in on African land. In the early 1930s, an Orthodox church was built in Bizert. A handful of Sevastopol land is still stored in the casket. The names of all the ships that came to Bizerte are carved on a marble plaque.

• Nika Award for Best Non-Fiction Film ^[4] ([2009)
• Golden Eagle Award - nomination for Best Non-Fiction Film ^[5] (2009)
• Prize for the best non-fiction film at the Third International Film Festival " Russian Abroad " (Moscow, 2009)
• Special Jury Prize of the XIV International Festival of Human Rights Films " Stalker " ^[6] (Moscow, 2008)
• Diploma of the First All-Russian Documentary Film Festival "Man and War" ( Yekaterinburg , 2008)
• Prize of the Vologda Governor “For the talented embodiment of a lively historical memory that restores the spiritual traditions of a thousand-year-old Russia” at the IV Open Film Festival of Non-Fiction and Animated Films for Children and Youth “Frescoes of the North” ^[7] (Vologda, 2008)
• Prize for the best documentary at the Fifth International Festival of Military Patriotic Film named after S. F. Bondarchuk "Volokolamsk Border" ( Volokolamsk , 2008)
• The main prize of the Open Film Festival “Window to Russia XXI Century” (Moscow, 2008)
• The main prize "Golden Sword" at the Sixth International Festival of Military Cinema named after People's Artist of the USSR Yuri Ozerov (Moscow, 2008)
• Audience Award, prize of the State Archive of Film and Photo Documents “For a highly artistic reflection of reality on the screen” and a prize of the Plenipotentiary Envoy of the President of the Russian Federation in the Urals Federal District “For the development of a patriotic theme” at the Russia Documentary Film Festival (Yekaterinburg, 2008)
• Memorial sign and diploma of the Sevastopol Maritime Assembly at the IV Sevastopol International Film Festival dedicated to the 225th anniversary of Sevastopol and the 100th anniversary of Russian film production ( Sevastopol , 2008)
• Golden Centaur Prize at the 18th International Film Festival of Documentary Short Films and Animation Films “ Message to a Man ” (St. Petersburg, 2008)
• Audience Award at the Russian Spring Film Festival (Paris, 2008)

• Victor Lisakovich - Director
• Nikolai Sologubovsky - script writer
• Nikolai Sologubovsky - operator
• Evgeny Shiryaev - composer
• Alexander Kuzmin - installation
• Victor Listov - announcer's text
• Dolores Melkonyan - editor
• Levon Manasyan, Dolores Melkonyan - producers

• Information about the film in the Encyclopedia of Russian Cinema