The Life and Death of Lieutenant Schmidt

About how the operation to rescue the members of the expedition 'North Pole-1' under the leadership of Ivan Papanin took place.

Ivan Lopatin, a Red Army soldier who has arrived in the village, convinces the peasants of the need to insure their livestock and buildings. But a kulak, on the advice of the priest, sets fire to Lopatin's yard. The fire destroys half of the village, and the priest, having quarreled with the kulak, tells the peasants the name of the arsonist. The kulak is arrested, and the peasants receive insurance money. The film ends with documentary footage of M.I. Kalinin's speech to the workers.

An overview of the expedition to the North Pole-1 ice station under the leadership of Ivan Papanin and the air expedition led by Otto Schmidt.

In 1930, during what became known as the Industrial Party Trial, some members of the Soviet technical elite were tried for plotting to form a counter-revolutionary party. This documentary depicts that trial, in which a dozen men are prosecuted for crimes against the Russian Revolution. They promptly confess and are given the chance to address the court with an explanation. Full of remorse, they plead for the opportunity to pay off their debt to society by working. Then they wait for their sentence.