An audience premiere of the animated film "Captain Nevelskoy and the Lands of the Black Dragon," produced by the Khabarovsk studio Mechtalet, was held at the Karo 11 Oktyabr cinema in Moscow, a TASS correspondent reported. The screening was followed by a discussion with the film's creators.
The film has become one of the flagship projects for developing creative industries in Russia's Far East. Its plot is based on the Amur expedition of Admiral Gennady Nevelskoy, which, according to the film's backers, secured Russia's eastern borders without a single shot fired and led to the Amur region and Sakhalin joining the country.
Copy given to Putin
At the Eastern Economic Forum, the film's creators handed a copy of the completed feature to Russian President Vladimir Putin. They are now awaiting his assessment. Putin had already been familiar with the project, having visited the Mechtalet studio in 2024, where he was briefed on details of the film then in production.
Director on the film's message
Asked what values the film instills in children, director Gleb Pavlenko told TASS that the filmmakers first of all wanted children to see in Captain Nevelskoy a man who pursued his dream despite his circumstances and despite what others around him said. He said they wanted children to feel how important it is to believe in yourself, to genuinely care about what you do, and to understand what you want to achieve in life.
Production details
Work on the film began in 2023 and involved more than 200 creators. It was made using a distinctive technique combining classical frame-by-frame two-dimensional animation with live orchestral music. The production was supported by the Cinema Fund, the government of Khabarovsk Territory, the Ministry for the Development of the Russian Far East and Arctic, and the Far East and Arctic Development Corporation. The official distributor is the company Atmosfera Kino.
International release planned
Besides Russia, the film is planned to be shown in Singapore, Toronto, Tokyo and Dubai.
