Moscow in Madrid

TCM is offering this short as an example of their series of shorts on art directors, but basically it's a promotional piece of publicity for the forthcoming David Lean production of DR. ZHIVAGO.

Mention is made of how Soviet Russia had to be replicated in Madrid when the Soviets refused to permit the director to film the story in a country where the book had been banned.

So, Lean had to go to Spain to recreate Russia outside of the Soviet Union. The story, of course, is set during the time of the Russian Revolution and covers a span of forty years. Various members of the cast are seen in brief close-ups and the short is narrated in typical press coverage fashion by an enthusiastic narrator urging you to see the fascinating screen epic.

Rather than a short on the work of the art director, it's practically a trailer for the film itself.