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However, after Albania broke with both the Soviet Union (1961) and China (1978), the regime imposed a near-total cultural blockade. Foreign films were banned, and Albanian cinema became self-referential, repetitive, and increasingly isolated. The fall of communism in 1991 devastated Kinostudio . State funding vanished; production dropped to one or two films per year. Many cinemas were closed or converted into casinos and shops. Filmmakers struggled with obsolete equipment and a fragmented distribution system.