Caroline Damiens is Associate Professor in film studies at the University of Paris Nanterre, France. She gained her PhD at the National Institute of Oriental Languages and Civilisations, Paris, and was a postdoctoral fellow at the Department of Research and Higher Education at the Quai Branly Museum, Paris.

• Acknowledgements Note on Transliteration Glossary Introduction - Manufacturing, imag(in)ing, representing, and negotiating the peoples of the North on screen I Shooting with indigenous people: expeditionary practices and filmic co-construction in the outskirts (1926-1935) 1.Filming the “Other” in the Soviet context: decolonising film practices and ways of seeing2.Out in the field: filmer-filmed relations on expedition shootsII Indigenous people in Soviet discourse on modernity: the politics of casting and representation (1935-1979)3.The Stalinist era: stories of Soviet progress and the invisibility of indigenous people4.Judging modernity: indigenous people as emblems of burgeoning ecological awarenessIII On TV: towards visual sovereignty (1969-1982)5.A new audio-visual space: TV fiction films and indigenous actors6.The moving image reappropriated by indigenous screenwriter Iurii Rytkheu Epilogue: rediscovering indigenous voices in Soviet cinemaNotesFilmographyBibliography Index

Damiens highlights the role of indigenous individuals in shaping their cinematic image, emphasizing lesser-known figures. Using a decolonial approach and extensive archival materials, she diligently re-evaluates Soviet cinema by centring indigenous voices, exploring the relationship between culture, representation, and identity.