ANIMATION UNIVERSE

It is gratifying to know that animation has secured its modest but notable place at the Moscow International Film Festival. “Animation Universe” traditionally caters to the audience of different ages, tastes and preferences. We are sure that screenings of animation movies from different countries will be interesting for neophyte audience as well as for seasoned festival goers and professional animators.

This year the compact section of feature animation includes very diverse movies. The first ever North Macedonian feature-length animation tells the story of space adventures of a hapless simpleton from Earth. In international distribution he is John, originally he is Jan or Ion, but to us he is undoubtedly Ivan. Just like folk fairytale simpletons he overpowers evil with goodness, comes through unscathed, finds friends and love along the path filled with unexpected adventures. To present the classic plot various techniques are used – hand-drawn and computer animation making use of 3D and computer graphics and thus adding aesthetic pleasure.

The long-awaited premiere of the movie by the acknowledged young master Leonid Shmelkov will evidently become a highlight in the world of animation. “Restlessness” is an absurdist drama with detective elements, blurring the borderline between reality and fantasy, while the protagonist Yasha has certain recognizable traits and habits of the director himself. The movie uses the rotoscope technique, which precisely convey naturalistic human movements. The technique has been creatively modified to comply with the concept of the movie.

“MULT in Cinema” is a unique project which has paved the way for animation to the big screen of cinema halls. Every issue presents the latest episodes of famous animation series prior to their release on the Internet or on TV. To mark the tenth anniversary of the project the premiere of its latest release will be held on the festival screen of our main cinema hall.

As always animation screenings are full of striking impressions and discoveries. Within the time frame of one hour young and grown-up viewers will travel to different countries, epochs and worlds.

The program offers movies for all ages (including young children), the latest works by filmmakers from Canada, India, China/Hong Kong, Argentina, Brazil, France and Russia. Growing up is a running theme uniting films which are different stylistically, technically and atmospherically.

Screenings for grown-ups include movies from China, France, Iran and Russia. Home films for grown-up viewers can be a revelation for neophyte audiences. The uniqueness of the surrealist and fantasy film language lets animation tackle the most serious, complicated and sensitive topics with more ease than feature films, among them death, old age, resigning to the inevitable, overcoming various life situations. Home and foreign shorts are not released in theatres and are accessible only to festival viewers which makes our screenings especially valuable.

Alena Sycheva, Tatiana Tsyvareva