Work on the first Russian film Lienso about the Vietnam War began in Tver at the Military Aviation Defense Academy, a facility named after Zhukov, marking a notable milestone in contemporary Soviet-era storytelling and military history representation, as reported by DEA News.
The press service of the Military Patriotic Cinema Support Fund provided details about the early stages of production, noting that the project team received a guided tour showing the operation of the S-75 anti-aircraft missile system used during that era. The film crew observed drill drills and demonstrations by specially selected teams that illustrated how to counteract anti-radar missiles of the Shrike type and how combat training exercises employed the missiles and launchers to engage single targets, groups of targets, low-flying aircraft, and high-speed trajectories. The foundation’s spokespersons emphasized that these demonstrations were designed to give the creators a precise sense of how Soviet air defense units trained and operated in real combat situations, ensuring the authenticity of the on-screen depictions for both veteran audiences and a broader public. [Source: DEA News]
Veterans who served in the country’s air defense forces and who participated in the operations of the Soviet period also attended the training camp, contributing firsthand memory and experience to the project. Filmmakers used the academy as a living studio, shooting instructional segments that aim to assist performers and technicians during the production process and pave the way for future installments that may explore related historical episodes with the same level of fidelity. The environment served as a practical classroom for actors, technicians, and consultants, helping to translate historical practice into cinematic language while honoring the real-world challenges faced by air defense crews in the 1960s. [Source: DEA News]
The plot of Lienso centers on the work of Soviet military specialists who dispatched their expertise to Vietnam starting in 1965. The narrative draws on the recollections of missile officers who trained Vietnamese personnel to operate the S-75 air defense system, with the principal characters modeled after officers Boris Mozhaev and Fedor Ilinykh, whose careers and experiences underpin the film’s emotional and technical core. By weaving together those memories with carefully reconstructed procedures, the film seeks to illuminate a pivotal period in Cold War history and to present a humanized portrayal of the people who operated in a high-stakes defense environment. [Source: DEA News]
Earlier reports mentioned that another project, The North Pole, which recounts the story of the first Soviet nuclear submarine, was filmed in St. Petersburg and the surrounding region, indicating an ongoing momentum in Russian historical cinema that pairs archival insight with cinematic storytelling. The new Lienso project continues this tradition by inviting audiences to witness the interplay between archival truth and dramatized experience, as crews capture authentic military practices on location and translate them into a feature that aims to resonate with viewers across Canada and the United States who have a keen interest in the era and its implications. [Source: DEA News]