ARKHANGELSK, December 9. /TASS/. The premiere of a documentary about female researchers of the Arctic plants - The Living Water - took place in Arkhangelsk at the 8th Arctic open International Film Festival. It was the second novel of the Women's Right for the Sea almanac about women scientists who worked in high latitudes in the early 20th century, and about modern female researchers.
"The second novel - The Living Water - is about Ksenia Gemp, a famous algologist (algae specialist) in the USSR, who participated in more than 30 marine expeditions to study the White Sea algae, as well as about her modern follower - Nadezhda Zueva, candidate of Geographical Sciences, who studies macrophytes - aquatic plants," the film's Director Anastasia Lomakina told TASS.
Female explorers of the North
Ksenia Gemp (1894-1998) was a Soviet algologist, geographer, hydrographer, historian, ethnographer, and an outstanding researcher of the Russian North. For more than 50 years she studied marine algae and explored their practical use. In 1943, she was sent to besieged Leningrad (St. Petersburg now), where within a short time she introduced the technology developed in Arkhangelsk to make vitamin foods of algae reserves discovered in the city.
"For episodes about Ksenia Gemp, we conducted large-scale filming on the Solovki, at the industrial site at the algae plant on the Malaya Muksalma. It was difficult, but very interesting," the film director said. "There was a strong wave during the filming, and without the professional assistants we had, we definitely wouldn't have managed and couldn't have mowed the kelp."
Natalia Berezneva, who performed the role of Ksenia Gemp, was chosen during a public casting. The authors in the very beginning warned the cast participants the shooting would be a real challenge: Gemp mows kelp in the open sea with a special dredge-scythe that is several meters long. "It was very cold, and I was wearing a thin linen shirt. The man who helped sail the boat, was wearing a warm sweater, jacket, pants and mittens. I was shivering with cold, and, if you look closely, you can see my lips are bluish," Natalia told TASS. The Solovki's mosquitoes and midges tested the group's endurance during work on the shore.
The actress noted that it was important for her to show the character's perseverance and great interest in science. "She came from an aristocratic family, that is, most likely she was raised as a woman typical of those times. But at the same time, she had a great strength that she was able to apply very effectively to achieve a lot for the world, for people," she added.
A modern researcher, shown in the film, is Nadezhda Zueva, associate professor at the Russian State Hydrometeorological University. She studies flora in reservoirs, explores lakes, including in the Arctic, and assesses their condition in climate change. Zueva's work is expeditions. The crew have received a question from the audience - how she can manage everything. "That's what an outstanding character we are showing: with two sons and a wonderful scientific career," Marina Frolova, the film's producer, told TASS.
About the Arctic open Film Festival
The Arctic open International Film Festival ran in the Arkhangelsk Region on December 5 - 8. The festival's events - screenings, meetings with actors, directors and film crews - were in the Arkhangelsk, Severodvinsk, Novodvinsk, Nyandom, Kargopol and Ustyansk Districts.