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Dr Deborah Allison

@deborahuk.bsky.social
256 followers 329 following 113 posts

Cinema programmer and film writer. Latest books: ‘Film Title Sequences: A Critical Anthology’ (2021) | ‘The Films of Aleksandr Rou: Father of Soviet Fairy-Tale Cinema’ (2025)

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Reposted by Dr Deborah Allison
Tom Reagan’s Hat @rufustsuperfly.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
It’s the mighty Chuck Jones’ birthday. Duck Amuck is his brilliant but kind of nightmarish masterpiece, at 5.42 youtu.be/QRSgRILrW14?...
youtu.be
Looney Tunes | Classic Daffy Duck Mega Compilation | Warner Classics
YouTube video by Warner Bros. Classics
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Dr Deborah Allison @deborahuk.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
Thrilled to see another lovely review of my book, ‘The Films of Aleksandr Rou: Father of Soviet Fairy-Tale Cinema’, in Slavic and East European Journal. You can read more reviews and a free sample at t.co/fcNdUgHJE0
Image shows the cover of the book ‘The Films of Aleksandr Rou: Father of Soviet Fairy-Tale Cinema’ by Deborah Allison, plus an extract of a review by Marina Rojavin, published in Slavic and East European Journal, which reads: ‘The book is a fantastic companion for both specialists and amateurs. After the author’s analysis, even if you have already watched Rou’s films, you will want to watch them again. I hope that many people read this book and that it inspires them to watch Rou’s films with an appreciative eye.’
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Dr Deborah Allison @deborahuk.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
Arrived home today to find a European Firebug parent-and-baby session in progress next to our doorstep.
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Reposted by Dr Deborah Allison
Intellect Books @intellectbooks.bsky.social · 23/07/2026
Read an interview with Deborah Allison, author of The Films of Aleksandr Rou: Father of Soviet Fairy-Tale Cinema. This book introduces the exhilarating oeuvre of one of the world’s great masters of fairy-tale cinema to Western audiences. 👉https://ow.ly/8Hoj50ZnEJw Dr Deborah Allison
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Jon Dear @accordingtojond.bsky.social · 22/07/2026
It’s the centenary of somewhat overlooked British director, writer and actor Bryan Forbes. BFI National Archive curator Dr. Jo Botting is organising a season of his work in September and has written this excellent piece for the BFI’s website.
bfi.org.uk
Bryan Forbes at 100: remembering the Whistle down the Wind and The Stepford Wives director on his centenary
From 1960s British classics such as Whistle down the Wind and Seance on a Wet Afternoon to big-budget Hollywood productions, the genre-hopping films of British director Bryan Forbes often reflected hi...
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Dr Deborah Allison @deborahuk.bsky.social · 19/07/2026
The delicious results of today’s impromptu blackberry foraging session.
Image shows a heap of ripe blackberries on a plate.
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Reposted by Dr Deborah Allison
Jon Dear @accordingtojond.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
In the rather funky environs of the Club Room at Picturehouse Finsbury Park to see @deborahuk.bsky.social introduce Soviet fairy tale Vasilisa the Beautiful. Here lie the origins of so much 80s fantasy cinema! Looking forward to getting Deborah's book.
Dr. Deborah Allison introducing the film. A big picture of her book, The Films of Aleksandor Rou is desplayed behind her. A longer shot, taking in the audience sat cabaret style.
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Dr Deborah Allison @deborahuk.bsky.social · 14/07/2026
This Thursday, 16 July, I’ll be introducing Aleksandr Rou’s wonderful Soviet fantasy film VASILISA THE BEAUTIFUL (1939) at Finsbury Park Picturehouse in London. Further info and tickets here: picturehouses.com/Vasilisa
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Intellect Books @intellectbooks.bsky.social · 12/07/2026
A great evening at the BFI with Deborah Allison discussing her new book, The Films of Aleksandr Rou. Thank you to everyone who joined us for a fascinating conversation about one of Russian cinema's most visionary filmmakers. 🎬📚
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Melanie Williams @britfilmmelanie.bsky.social · 30/06/2026
More BFI object of the week stuff, and this time it's got that Ealing feeling www.bfi.org.uk/inside-the-a...
bfi.org.uk
The back room from Dead of Night: the production design for a dusty hiding place
In a section of Ealing’s classic anthology horror Dead of Night, children hide in an empty room that’s become a dumping ground for obsolete household items. The original production design sketched out...
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Reposted by Dr Deborah Allison
Dr Deborah Allison @deborahuk.bsky.social · 15/05/2026
Fancy the rare chance to watch a classic of Soviet fantasy cinema on the big screen? Join me at Finsbury Park Picturehouse on 16 July when I’ll be introducing director Aleksandr Rou’s rather wonderful VASILISA THE BEAUTIFUL (1939). picturehouses.com/Vasilisa
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Rogue Commentary @roguecommentary.bsky.social · 24/06/2026
𝗔𝘂𝗱𝗶𝗼 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗗𝗮𝘆 @vicpratt.bsky.social‘s excellent commentary for the little-seen psychological drama Eclipse (1977), available on the @BFI Blu-ray 🎧
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Reposted by Dr Deborah Allison
Intellect Books @intellectbooks.bsky.social · 18/06/2026
New book review! Find out more about the book 👉https://www.intellectbooks.com/the-films-of-aleksandr-rou
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Reposted by Dr Deborah Allison
Intellect Books @intellectbooks.bsky.social · 14/06/2026
On this episode, James Campbell is joined by Deborah Allison, author of The Films of Aleksandr Rou: Father of Soviet Fairy-Tale Cinema. They discuss Rou's life, filmmaking style, fairy-tale adaptations and lasting impact on Soviet cinema. Watch 👉https://youtu.be/aysnlid-LNM
Podcast episode announcement featuring Deborah Allison, author of a book on Aleksandr Rou and Soviet fairy-tale cinema, with a blurred portrait and soundwave graphics.
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Vic Pratt @vicpratt.bsky.social · 12/06/2026
There's a lovely review of Children's Film Foundation Bumper Box Volume 6 by the marvellous Bob Fischer @bobfischer.bsky.social in the latest Fortean Times...
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Dr Deborah Allison @deborahuk.bsky.social · 10/06/2026
Please join me next Monday, 15 June, when I’ll be on the other side of this lovely Storyteller window at the BFI Reuben Library to talk about my latest book: ‘The Films of Aleksandr Rou: Father of Soviet Fairy-Tale Cinema’. More info here: tinyurl.com/43atz6ce @intellectbooks.bsky.social
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Dr Deborah Allison @deborahuk.bsky.social · 08/06/2026
Today’s postal delivery. I wrote about the opening title sequences of Universal horror movies in the 1930s and 1940s for the new issue of The Age of Thrills. #titledesign
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Intellect Books @intellectbooks.bsky.social · 02/06/2026
In this illustrated presentation, Dr Deborah Allison introduces the work of one of the world’s great masters of fairy-tale cinema. Buy tickets here 👉https://ow.ly/a1cw50YY5sS Dr Deborah Allison
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theartsdesk @theartsdesk.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
'Short, sweet, high on kid-based comedy hi-jinks and straightforward adventure; low on boring grown-ups' ★★★★★ CHILDREN'S FILM FOUNDATION Volume 6 - Life-enhancing vintage entertainment, for children of all ages, now on #BFI DVD - review @grahamrickson.bsky.social www.theartsdesk.com/film/dvd-chi...
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Society for Cinema and Media Studies @scmstudies.bsky.social · 27/05/2026
Precarious scholar? Grad student? Are you thinking of submitting to #SCMS27 but have no institutional support for membership? Apply for a 2026-27 SCMS membership fee waiver from the PLO! Deadline: July 27! buff.ly/RCFLdff
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Dr Deborah Allison @deborahuk.bsky.social · 27/05/2026
Ahead of my book talk at the BFI Reuben Library on 15 June, I wrote this piece for the BFI website: Where to begin with Aleksandr Rou. www.bfi.org.uk/features/where-begin-with-aleksandr-rou
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Dr Deborah Allison @deborahuk.bsky.social · 26/05/2026
A record-breaking 35 degrees in London today. How I long for Jack Frost to touch me with his icy wand. Aleksandr Khvylia in MOROZKO (aka Jack Frost; dir. Aleksandr Rou, USSR, 1964).
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Dr Deborah Allison @deborahuk.bsky.social · 21/05/2026
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Dr Deborah Allison @deborahuk.bsky.social · 15/05/2026
Fancy the rare chance to watch a classic of Soviet fantasy cinema on the big screen? Join me at Finsbury Park Picturehouse on 16 July when I’ll be introducing director Aleksandr Rou’s rather wonderful VASILISA THE BEAUTIFUL (1939). picturehouses.com/Vasilisa
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Dr Deborah Allison @deborahuk.bsky.social · 10/05/2026
I did some writing! It was fun to revisit ‘Invaders from Mars’ (1953) for the BFI’S upcoming extras-stacked 4K UHD Blu-ray release – out tomorrow.
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Dr Deborah Allison @deborahuk.bsky.social · 08/05/2026
Join me on Monday 15 June at BFI Southbank in London, where I’ll be talking about my book, ‘The Films of Aleksandr Rou: Father of Soviet Fairy-Tale Cinema’, at the wonderful BFI Reuben Library. Tickets available now.
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Vic Pratt @vicpratt.bsky.social · 06/05/2026
Have you heard the GOON POD podcast? All things Sellers, Milligan,Secombe, et al. I had a fine time chatting to host Tyler Adams about the Sellers-directed MR TOPAZE - a much underated film & one of my favourite BFI Flipside releases. Check it out: podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/m...
podcasts.apple.com
Mr Topaze (1961)
Podcast Episode · Goon Pod · 6 May · 1hr 15min
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Dr Deborah Allison @deborahuk.bsky.social · 04/05/2026
Discover the Soviet fantasy cinema of Aleksandr Rou and take a walk on the wild side with ‘Barbara the Fair with the Silken Hair’: www.youtube.com/watch?v=QkZH6cyBrB4. Read more about it in my new book, ‘The Films of Aleksandr Rou: Father of Soviet Fairy-Tale Cinema’: ow.ly/MbXT50YJNJs
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Dr Deborah Allison @deborahuk.bsky.social · 27/04/2026
c.org/6JbSFKsbNv
c.org
We Can Make an Impact.
Keep the Hammer House Sign at the Hammer House of Horror on Wardour Street
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Dr Deborah Allison @deborahuk.bsky.social · 25/04/2026
Delighted to have been given the opportunity to contribute to this splendid new 4K UHD release of Saul Bass’s PHASE IV, released by 88 Films this week. It’s a film I like a lot. Review by @nicksetchfield.bsky.social for SFX Magazine.
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Internet Archive @archive.org · 23/04/2026
🧵 We tend to think the internet is permanent, but VANISHING CULTURE—the new 📚 from Internet Archive—starts with a simple reality: our digital record is far more fragile than we think 🕳️ 📖 Read for free: archive.org/details/vani... 🛒 Purchase in print: www.betterworldbooks.com/product/deta... ⬇️
Book cover titled “Vanishing Culture” on a teal background. Pixel-art style graphics show a VHS tape, open book, film reel, chain link, and vinyl record dissolving into digital fragments. At the bottom, a cursor icon points to the word “SAVE,” alongside an archive-style building icon, evoking digital preservation.
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Terence Towles Canote @mercurie80.bsky.social · 24/04/2026
Today in 1914 director William Castle was born.
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Intellect Books @intellectbooks.bsky.social · 24/04/2026
The Films of Aleksandr Rou: Father of Soviet Fairy-Tale Cinema by Deborah Allison is out in paperback now! This book introduces the exhilarating oeuvre of one of the world’s great masters of fairy-tale cinema to Western audiences. Find out more here 👉https://ow.ly/MbXT50YJNJs
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Dr Deborah Allison @deborahuk.bsky.social · 22/04/2026
Discover the weird and wonderful fantasy cinema of Aleksandr Rou. Watch ‘The Magic Weaver’ (USSR, 1959) with subs: youtube.com/watch?v=EfYy_FPrRjk. Then read more about it in my new book, ‘The Films of Aleksandr Rou: Father of Soviet Fairy-Tale Cinema’: intellectbooks.com/the-films-of-aleksandr-rou
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Dr Deborah Allison @deborahuk.bsky.social · 21/04/2026
Discover the colourful Soviet fantasy cinema of Aleksandr Rou. Watch ‘Jack Frost’ (Morozko, 1964) with subs: youtube.com/watch?v=BdXygZcZSWY. Then read more about it in my new book, ‘The Films of Aleksandr Rou: Father of Soviet Fairy-Tale Cinema’: intellectbooks.com/the-films-of-aleksandr-rou
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Dr Deborah Allison @deborahuk.bsky.social · 18/04/2026
Love folklore on film? Horror, romance, music and comedy combine in ‘May Night’ (USSR, 1952), based on Gogol’s retelling of Ukrainian folktales. Read more in ‘The Films of Aleksandr Rou: Father of Soviet Fairy-Tale Cinema’, out in paperback April 2026. intellectbooks.com/the-films-of-aleksandr-rou
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Dr Deborah Allison @deborahuk.bsky.social · 16/04/2026
Discover the fantasy cinema of Aleksandr Rou. Watch ‘The Kingdom of Crooked Mirrors’ (1963) with subs: sovietmoviesonline.com/fantasy/korolevstvo-krivyh-zerkal. Then read more about it in ‘The Films of Aleksandr Rou: Father of Soviet Fairy-Tale Cinema’: intellectbooks.com/the-films-of-aleksandr-rou
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Dr Deborah Allison @deborahuk.bsky.social · 15/04/2026
Discover ‘The Films of Aleksandr Rou: Father of Soviet Fairy-Tale Cinema’. In paperback April 2026. Use code INTELLECT30 for a 30% discount on pre-orders direct from Intellect (UK) bit.ly/3Qj9Q2E or Chicago University Press (US) bit.ly/47HqU8F. #WorldCinema
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Dr Deborah Allison @deborahuk.bsky.social · 15/04/2026
Love folklore on film? Discover the cinema of Aleksandr Rou. ‘The Night Before Christmas’ aka ‘Evenings on a Farm Near Dikanka’ (USSR, 1960). Read more in ‘The Films of Aleksandr Rou: Father of Soviet Fairy-Tale Cinema’, out in paperback April 2026. intellectbooks.com/the-films-of-aleksandr-rou
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Open Culture @openculture.bsky.social · 14/04/2026
Watch 35 Short Films by Charles and Ray Eames: “Powers of Ten,” the History of the Computer & More
openculture.com
Watch 35 Short Films by Charles and Ray Eames: “Powers of Ten,” the History of the Computer & More
The Pacific Palisades fire of January 25 destroyed much of that coastal Los Angeles neighborhood, but it somehow spared the Charles and Ray Eames house.
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Soho Bites Podcast @sohobitespodcast.com · 14/04/2026
"King of the Underworld", the film @vicpratt.bsky.social discusses in this month's show, is actually 3 episodes of an old TV series “Inspector Morley, Late of Scotland Yard” stitched together. Each story ends abruptly. This is the end scene from story 1, cut out when the film was put together 📽️ 1/3
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Bob Fischer @bobfischer.bsky.social · 14/04/2026
New and exclusive on the Haunted Generation website! A genial natter with the BFI's own @vicpratt.bsky.social, producer of the brand new Children's Film Foundation box set. Magic marbles, escaped lions, Michael Elphick and pocket calculators all included... hauntedgeneration.co.uk/2026/04/14/v...
hauntedgeneration.co.uk
Vic Pratt, The Children’s Film Foundation and Texas Instruments
It’s a catholic body of work that can seamlessly incorporate 1) a magic marble that gives 1950s children unlimited access to toys from Bermondsey market, and 2) Michael Elphick threatening to…
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Dr Deborah Allison @deborahuk.bsky.social · 14/04/2026
Adapted from Slavic folklore, ‘Vasilisa the Beautiful’ (dir. Aleksandr Rou, 1939) tells of a virtuous maiden transported by the dragon Gorynych to his dark domain where the forest witch, Baba Yaga, grooms her to be the dragon’s bride. The Soviet Union’s first major fantasy film. #fairytaletuesday
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Dr Deborah Allison @deborahuk.bsky.social · 13/04/2026
Discover the fantasy and fairy-tale movies of Aleksandr Rou. ‘The Magic Weaver’ (USSR, 1959). Read more in my book ‘The Films of Aleksandr Rou: Father of Soviet Fairy-Tale Cinema’, out in paperback April 2026. intellectbooks.com/the-films-of-aleksandr-rou #fantasy #fairytale #SovietCinema
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Dr Deborah Allison @deborahuk.bsky.social · 12/04/2026
Discover the fantasy and fairy-tale movies of Aleksandr Rou. ‘Jack Frost’ (Morozko, USSR, 1964). Read more in my book ‘The Films of Aleksandr Rou: Father of Soviet Fairy-Tale Cinema’, out in paperback April 2026. intellectbooks.com/the-films-of-aleksandr-rou #fantasy #fairytale #SovietCinema
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Dr Deborah Allison @deborahuk.bsky.social · 11/04/2026
Discover the fantasy and fairy-tale movies of Aleksandr Rou. ‘New Adventures of Puss in Boots’ (USSR, 1958). Read more in my book ‘The Films of Aleksandr Rou: Father of Soviet Fairy-Tale Cinema’, in paperback April 2026. intellectbooks.com/the-films-of-aleksandr-rou #fantasy #fairytale #SovietCinema
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Dr Deborah Allison @deborahuk.bsky.social · 09/04/2026
Maurice Binder, title designer extraordinaire: 4 Dec 1925 – 9 April 1991. After the Fox, Arabesque, Bedazzled, Billion Dollar Brain, Charade, Dr No, Kaleidoscope, The Grass is Greener, Repulsion, and many more. #titledesign
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Dr Deborah Allison @deborahuk.bsky.social · 07/04/2026
Discover the fantasy and fairy-tale movies of Aleksandr Rou. ‘Kashchei The Immortal’ (USSR, 1945). Read more in my book ‘The Films of Aleksandr Rou: Father of Soviet Fairy-Tale Cinema’, out in paperback April 2026. bit.ly/3Qj9Q2E #fantasy #SovietCinema
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Dr Deborah Allison @deborahuk.bsky.social · 06/04/2026
Discover the fantasy and fairy-tale movies of Aleksandr Rou. ‘Kingdom of Crooked Mirrors’ (USSR, 1963). Read more in my book ‘The Films of Aleksandr Rou: Father of Soviet Fairy-Tale Cinema’, out in paperback April 2026. bit.ly/3Qj9Q2E #fantasy #SovietCinema
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Dr Deborah Allison @deborahuk.bsky.social · 06/04/2026
Out in paperback this month: My book, ‘The Films of Aleksandr Rou: Father of Soviet Fairy-Tale Cinema’. Use code INTELLECT30 for a 30% discount on pre-orders direct from Intellect (UK) bit.ly/3Qj9Q2E or Chicago University Press (US) bit.ly/47HqU8F. #AleksandrRou #АлександрРоу
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