Yelena Kaplinskaya

Elena Kaplinskaya (October 17, 1928, Moscow - January 3, 2014, Moscow), Russian writer, playwright, screenwriter, author of theatrical dramas, screenplays, short stories and novels, a member of the Russian Writers Union, the Union of Journalists of Russia and the Moscow Writers' Union. Elena Kaplinskaya was born in Moscow in 1928 and studied at the Musical College of Gnesin. In 1955 she graduated from the scriptwriting faculty of the VGIK and married the Polish actor and film director Tsezary Kaplinsky. She was a member of the Writers' Union from 1978 and from 1994 member of the Union of Journalists of Russia. Kaplinskaya trained as a scriptwriter and became the winner of many creative writing competitions including that of Belarusfilm, the competition for the Prize of Pogodin and the International Competition for the best woman's story in 1992.

Elena Kaplinskaya worked with prominent contemporary filmmakers such as Kostromenko, Titov, Brovkin and many others. Besides screenplays Kaplinskaya wrote theatrical plays, novels and short stories, and her articles were published in literary journals including the independent literary and political magazine "Friendship of Nations".

Elena Kaplinskaya's native city, Moscow, and the city played a central part in her stories. In her novel "A Moscow Story" the image of the city and its inhabitants are presented as the symbol of goodness and justice. The novel was born out of the complex changes in the social life in Moscow in the 1970s and early 1980s and became the subject of heated social and literary discussions. The novel was translated into French in 1984 and was published in Paris by Messidor Publishing.

The heroes of her other novel, "The Cinema of Moscow", belong to the first generation of post-war youth in Russia. The story also partly takes part in Hungary and describes the life of the Hungarian anti-fascists and documentary film director Ilona Kolonits. The play "The Best Loved" Kaplinskaya wrote in memory of all those who died in World War II in Russia at the Battle of Kursk while defending the cities of Leningrad (now Saint-Petersburg) and Stalingrad (now Volgograd) . Kaplinskaya's film scripts were made into feature films by many film directors in Russia.