Vasili Stepanov

A silent feature short film by Vasily Goncharov based on a folk song of the same name. It was filmed with actors from the Vvedensky Folk House troupe. The movie is preserved without inscriptions.

Film adaptation of excerpts from Nikolai Gogol's novel of the same name. Only two episodes are recreated faithfully: Chichikov's visit to Sobakevich and Chichikov's visit to Plyushkin. These episodes are followed by a series of scenes in which other characters appear without any connection with the plot. In the finale, everyone is photographed next to the bust of Gogol.

"Rusalka" or "Mermaid" based on Pushkin, an opera by Dargomizhsky, and other sources: A prince and a miller's daughter have been involved in a romance together, but now the prince tells her that he must break it off. After the prince leaves, the distraught young woman attempts to drown herself. When the prince's wedding day arrives, he is tormented by her image, which appears wherever he goes. Eventually, he is compelled to return and to try to find out what happened to her, regardless of the consequences.

Mazepa, the Ukrainian governor is in love with his goddaughter Maria. He quickly wins her heart. But her old father treats the wooer harshly… Maria runs away. The furious father won’t submit. This intrigue makes the most of the ingredients of historical drama. Maria is confronted to the arbitrary; the young woman is in a dilemma between her love and her family. The tragic outcome is equal to her destiny.

"The Living Corpse" - Fedor Protasov is tormented by the thought that his wife Liza never really made a clear choice between him and Victor Karenin, a more conventional rival for her hand. He wants to kill himself, but doesn't have the nerve. Running away from his life, he falls in with Gypsies, and into a sexual relationship with a Gypsy singer Mascha. Meanwhile, his wife Liza, presuming him dead, marries the other man, Victor.

A significant part of the 1912 production "A Life for the Tsar" was used in this film.