Sergei Mikhailovich Eisenstein (; January 23, 1898 – February 11, 1948) was a Soviet Russian movie director and movie theorist. He was known mostly for his silent movies "Strike", "The Battleship Potemkin" and "". He was also known for his historical epics "Alexander Nevsky" and "Ivan the Terrible". His work had a major impact on early movie directors because of his creative use of and writings about montage.