June 05, 2024

Make Fairy Tales, not War


Make Fairy Tales, not War
The Aurora movie theater, St. Petersburg. The Russian Life files

According to Russian independent outlet Agentsvo, the state Cinema Fund and the Ministry of Culture have spent over R1.7 billion ($18.8 million) on fairy tale films released in 2024. This is a record and surpasses government spending on war films to be released this year.

In the first five months of 2024, Russia has released three fairy tale films: “Bremenskie muzykanty”  ("The Bremen Town Musicians"), “Letuchy Korabl” ("The Flying Ship"), and the sci-fi “100 Let Tomu Vperyod” ("100 Years Ahead"). Additionally, three more state-funded fairy tale films will be released later this year: "Vasilisa," "Ognivo" (“The Tinderbox"), and “Samaya Bolshya Luna” ("The Biggest Moon"), with the Cinema Fund spending half a billion rubles on them. In total, R2.2 billion ($24.3 billion) has been allocated for all fairy tale films released or set to be released this year.

Spending on fairy tale films has been on the rise since 2015. That year, about R200 million ($2.2 million) was spent on the genre. The share of government spending on fairy tales grew from 5.3 percent in 2015 to 36.2 percent in 2024.

In contrast, the government has spent R1 billion ($11 million) on war films. This year, five war films have been released: three about World War II, one about the commander of the Alpha special squad, and one about the ongoing Russian war in Ukraine: “Pozyvnoy 'Passazhir'" ("Code Name: 'Passenger'").

One reason for the increased funding for fairy tale films may be their greater popularity. Fantasy films released this year have gotten 15.5 million views. “Bremenskie muzykanty” was the most popular, with 8.3 million views. “Letuchiy Korabl” and “100 Let Tomu Vpered” each attracted 3.7 million viewers.

In comparison, military films drew significantly fewer viewers, totaling about 2.5 million. The most popular war film was "Vozdukh” ("Air"), directed by Alexei German Jr., about Soviet female pilots during World War II, which had 1.5 million viewers. “Komandir” ("Commander") about the commander of the Alpha special unit, attracted 490,000 viewers, and “Pozivnoy ‘Passazhyr’," about a Moscow writer who went to the war in Donbas, had 420,000 viewers.

Films about the Russian war in Ukraine have not been popular. For instance, the 2023 film “Svidetel” ("Witness”), which depicts fictitious crimes by the Ukrainian military, was watched by less than 50,000 persons, with an average attendance of five people per showing.

You Might Also Like

Disability Numbers Soar
  • May 30, 2024

Disability Numbers Soar

Disability numbers have seen a drastic increase since the beginning of the war. 
New Leonardos at the Hermitage?
  • May 23, 2024

New Leonardos at the Hermitage?

An exhibit backed by a close associate of the Kremlin claims, erroneously, to show paintings newly attributed to Leonardo da Vinci. 
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

Okudzhava Bilingual

Okudzhava Bilingual

Poems, songs and autobiographical sketches by Bulat Okudzhava, the king of the Russian bards. 
A Taste of Russia

A Taste of Russia

The definitive modern cookbook on Russian cuisine has been totally updated and redesigned in a 30th Anniversary Edition. Layering superbly researched recipes with informative essays on the dishes' rich historical and cultural context, A Taste of Russia includes over 200 recipes on everything from borshch to blini, from Salmon Coulibiac to Beef Stew with Rum, from Marinated Mushrooms to Walnut-honey Filled Pies. A Taste of Russia shows off the best that Russian cooking has to offer. Full of great quotes from Russian literature about Russian food and designed in a convenient wide format that stays open during use.
The Frogs Who Begged for a Tsar (bilingual)

The Frogs Who Begged for a Tsar (bilingual)

The fables of Ivan Krylov are rich fonts of Russian cultural wisdom and experience – reading and understanding them is vital to grasping the Russian worldview. This new edition of 62 of Krylov’s tales presents them side-by-side in English and Russian. The wonderfully lyrical translations by Lydia Razran Stone are accompanied by original, whimsical color illustrations by Katya Korobkina.
Dostoyevsky Bilingual

Dostoyevsky Bilingual

Bilingual series of short, lesser known, but highly significant works that show the traditional view of Dostoyevsky as a dour, intense, philosophical writer to be unnecessarily one-sided. 
Marooned in Moscow

Marooned in Moscow

This gripping autobiography plays out against the backdrop of Russia's bloody Civil War, and was one of the first Western eyewitness accounts of life in post-revolutionary Russia. Marooned in Moscow provides a fascinating account of one woman's entry into war-torn Russia in early 1920, first-person impressions of many in the top Soviet leadership, and accounts of the author's increasingly dangerous work as a journalist and spy, to say nothing of her work on behalf of prisoners, her two arrests, and her eventual ten-month-long imprisonment, including in the infamous Lubyanka prison. It is a veritable encyclopedia of life in Russia in the early 1920s.
Fish: A History of One Migration

Fish: A History of One Migration

This mesmerizing novel from one of Russia’s most important modern authors traces the life journey of a selfless Russian everywoman. In the wake of the Soviet breakup, inexorable forces drag Vera across the breadth of the Russian empire. Facing a relentless onslaught of human and social trials, she swims against the current of life, countering adversity and pain with compassion and hope, in many ways personifying Mother Russia’s torment and resilience amid the Soviet disintegration.
Russian Rules

Russian Rules

From the shores of the White Sea to Moscow and the Northern Caucasus, Russian Rules is a high-speed thriller based on actual events, terrifying possibilities, and some really stupid decisions.
The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

This exciting new trilogy by a Russian author – who has been compared to Orhan Pamuk and Umberto Eco – vividly recreates a lost world, yet its passions and characters are entirely relevant to the present day. Full of mystery, memorable characters, and non-stop adventure, The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas is a must read for lovers of historical fiction and international thrillers.  
Maria's War: A Soldier's Autobiography

Maria's War: A Soldier's Autobiography

This astonishingly gripping autobiography by the founder of the Russian Women’s Death Battallion in World War I is an eye-opening documentary of life before, during and after the Bolshevik Revolution.
At the Circus (bilingual)

At the Circus (bilingual)

This wonderful novella by Alexander Kuprin tells the story of the wrestler Arbuzov and his battle against a renowned American wrestler. Rich in detail and characterization, At the Circus brims with excitement and life. You can smell the sawdust in the big top, see the vivid and colorful characters, sense the tension build as Arbuzov readies to face off against the American.
Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka

Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka

In this comprehensive, quixotic and addictive book, Edwin Trommelen explores all facets of the Russian obsession with vodka. Peering chiefly through the lenses of history and literature, Trommelen offers up an appropriately complex, rich and bittersweet portrait, based on great respect for Russian culture.

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955