The KROK International Animated Films Festival is an annual international animated film festival, and one of the main animation festivals in the territory of the former

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

. It is held in Russia on even years and in Ukraine on odd years. The

film festival A film festival is an organized, extended presentation of films in one or more cinemas or screening venues, usually in a single city or region. Increasingly, film festivals show some films outdoors. Films may be of recent date and, depending upo ...

takes place over the course of 12 days between September and October on the

cruise ship Cruise ships are large passenger ships used mainly for vacationing. Unlike ocean liners, which are used for transport, cruise ships typically embark on round-trip voyages to various ports-of-call, where passengers may go on tours known as ...

''Taras Shevchenko''. When in Russia, it cruises along the

Volga The Volga (; russian: Во́лга, a=Ru-Волга.ogg, p=ˈvoɫɡə) is the longest river in Europe. Situated in Russia, it flows through Central Russia to Southern Russia and into the Caspian Sea. The Volga has a length of , and a catchm ...

, and when in Ukraine it cruises along the

Dnieper } The Dnieper () or Dnipro (); , ; . is one of the major transboundary rivers of Europe, rising in the Valdai Hills near Smolensk, Russia, before flowing through Belarus and Ukraine to the Black Sea. It is the longest river of Ukraine and ...

and the

Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, Rom ...

. The festival's history began at the 1987, perestroika-era

Moscow International Film Festival The Moscow International Film Festival (russian: Моско́вский междунаро́дный кинофестива́ль, translit. ''Moskóvskiy myezhdunaródniy kinofyestivál''; abbreviated as MIFF) is the film festival first h ...

, where it was decided to create separate contests for documentary, children's and animated films. In 1989, the festival was first held as a separate event. The name "KROK" was thought up by

Garri Bardin Garri Yakovlevich Bardin (russian: Гарри Яковлевич Бардин; born September 11, 1941) is a Soviet and Russian animation director, screenwriter, producer and actor best known for his experimental musical and stop motion films.''S ...

and means "step" in

Ukrainian Ukrainian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Ukraine * Something relating to Ukrainians, an East Slavic people from Eastern Europe * Something relating to demographics of Ukraine in terms of demography and population of Ukraine * So ...

. In 1991, with the dissolution of the Soviet Union, it was decided to make the festival international, and it was held on a cruise ship for the first time. The festival has been put on hold since 2019, owing to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

, with the 25th edition cancelled in 2020. As well as the competitive categories, the festival also features other animation screenings, events, and lectures. It is often attended by the top animators and

directors Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''D ...

of animation of the region.Review: 18th KROK International Festival of Animation
''Animation World Network''. 2011-12-06. The festival is committed to the "ideals of humanism, peace and friendship between nations", using animated films to convey the message.

References

External links

Official websiteFirst official website with information about the 4th festival (1997)
Animation film festivals Film festivals in Russia Film festivals in Ukraine Autumn events in Ukraine Autumn events in Russia {{Europe-film-festival-stub

See also

References

External links