The Pera Museum in Beyoğlu's Tepebaşı quarter will screen a series of Russian films as part of its "From the Tsars to the Stars: Russian Fantastic Cinema" from Oct. 30 to Dec. 13. In collaboration with Seagull Films, the program features rare films from the Russian cinema's long tradition of fantasy and science fiction cinema in collaboration with Seagull Films.The program was initially presented in 2006 by Seagull Films, the Film Society of the Lincoln Center and the American Cinematheque, in collaboration with Concern Mosfilm, Russian State Archive Gosfilmofond and M-Film Studio. The program was curated by Alla Verlotsky, Robert Skotak and Dennis Bartok.Beginning with the pioneering animation of Ladislaw Starewicz, through the silent classic "Aelita: Queen of Mars," and on to the astonishing visions of Aleksandr Ptushko and Pavel Klushantsev, Russian genre cinema was colorful and technologically advanced. Master Andrei Tarkovsky took this further, fashioning the highly philosophical and feverishly cinematic sci-fi epics "Solaris" and "Stalker." Still, other films such as Karen Shakhnazarov's remarkable, black comic meditation on Soviet history during the Perestroika era "Zero City" and Alexei Fedorchenko's "First on the Moon," are crafty allegories of an ideological system in its waning days. Here are some highlights from the program:'Aelita, Queen of Mars'Directed by Soviet filmmaker Jakov Protazanov, "Aelita, Queen of Mars" is the world's first feature film to use interplanetary travel as its main plot line. Based on Tolstoy's novel, the movie depicts a brilliant engineer and a soldier traveling to the Red Planet to find it inhabited by meek humanoids and ruled with an iron fist by the beautiful Aelita. The film's unique set design captures Soviet Constructivism. The movie will be screened on Oct. 30 and Nov. 8.'The Amphibian Man'The movie is one of the most beloved Russian films ever. Residents of a coastal town are thrilled after hearing about an unknown creature in the ocean. Nobody knows what it is; however, it turns out to be the son of Dr. Salvator. "The Amphibian Man" is an ultimate product of the late 1950s-early '60s "Thaw." In 1962, the movie achieved 65 million admissions. It will be screened on Oct. 30 and Nov. 8.'Planet of Storms'The 1962 production was directed by Pavel Klushantsev and stars Vladimir Yemelyanov, Georgi Zhzhyonov, and Gennadi Vernov. Cosmonauts land on the planet Venus, where they find themselves in danger, surrounded by furious volcanoes and prehistoric beasts. Soviet sci-fi legend Pavel Klushantsev was inspired by a novel by fellow Soviet sci-fi eminence Aleksandr Kazantsev. The movie will be at Pera Museum on Nov. 11 and Nov. 22.'Solaris'Directed by Andrei Tarkovsky, "Solaris" is an influential sci-fi production. "The director doesn't quite bother with futuristic vistas (the film's lone city scene was simply shot in contemporary Tokyo), concentrating on the barren 'soulscapes' of the characters. Among the pleasures missing from the recent fair Hollywood remake are the many mirror-hall ambivalences of the coda and Eduard Artemiev's astonishing score (played on primitive synthesizers)," film producer Robert Skotak said in a statement. It will be screened on Nov. 14 and Nov. 18.'Stalker'"Stalker" is one of the most successful films by Andrei Tarkovsky along with "Solaris." The movie was adapted from a novel by Soviet sci-fi authors Arkady and Boris Strugatsky. A guide leads the audience to a mysterious zone, which is said to contain a room that grants wishes. The stalker will take you there for a fee, past military checkpoints and more obscure dangers. The cast features Alisa Freyndlikh, Aleksandr Kaydanovskiy and Anatoliy Solonitsyn. "Stalker" will be screened on Nov. 28 and Dec. 12.'Zero City'"Zero City" is one of the biggest films from the Perestroika era. Directed by Karen Shakhnazarov, it tells the story of a Moscow engineer named Varakin. Kent Jones, a famous scriptwriter, gives a synopsis of the film as follows: "Varakin who arrives in a small town with instructions to change the size of a locally manufactured air-conditioner part. He arrives at the company office. Next, he finds himself sitting down to lunch. The dessert arrives, a cake that strongly resembles his own head, baked by a chef who soon shoots himself in the head. With its images of a burdensome past and an indeterminate future based on both folk tale and more modern forms of absurdism, Shakhnazarov's very funny and poignant film is a true historical touchstone." It will be at Pera Museum on Dec. 9 and Dec. 13.'First on the Moon'Starring Aleksey Anisimov, Viktoriya Ilyinskaya and Viktor Kotov, "First on the Moon" was directed by Alexsey Fedorchenko. The 2005 production illustrates a fictional 1930s Soviet landing on the moon. "First on the Moon" will be screened on Nov. 21 and Dec. 13.'To the Stars by Hard Ways'The 1981 production features a female created in space, which then tries to live on earth. Starring Yelena Metyolkina, Vadim Ledogorov and Uldis Lieldidz, the movie was directed by Richard Viktorov. After the fall of the USSR, it inevitably became a cult hit among the Russian hipster set.