Lomonosov in Russian fiction and non-fiction cinema

The article examines the distinctive features of creating the image of the outstanding Russian scientist, writer, and public figure M.V. Lomonosov in Soviet and Russian cinema. The research material consists of films about M.V. Lomonosov from various periods of domestic cinematography development: Mikhailo Lomonosov (dir. A. Ivanov, 1955), Dym Otechestva (Homeland Smoke) (dir. Ya. Lapshin, 1980), Mikhailo Lomonosov (dir. A. Proshkin, 1986), as well as documentary films and television programs about the great scientist. Employing a semiotic approach, textual, and comparative analysis, the study identifies key formal and substantive emphases in image construction and explores the methods and techniques used to form a stereoscopic portrait of this multifaceted, comprehensively developed personality. The analysis concludes that directors' approaches to depicting the scientist's personality varied not only under the influence of individual authorial styles but also due to pressures from specific sociocultural norms dominant in society during different historical periods.