The legendary film studio, Soyuzmultfilm, and the Directorate for Sports and Social Projects – federal operator of the GTO complex – have started working on an animated series featuring GTO mascots as protagonists.
The agreement containing a detailed movie creation plan was signed on 16 March during the meeting of the parties. Director General of the Directorate for Sports and Social Projects, Maksim Denisov, and Chief Operating Officer of Soyuzmultfilm, Olga Leontyeva, took part in the meeting. Azat Kadyrov, First Deputy Minister of Sport of the Russian Federation, and Yuliana Slascheva, Board Chairman of the Soyuzmultfilm Film Studio, were also present.
“It’s good to know that the agreement of intent, which was signed earlier, is now going through the first stage of implementation. We plan to show the first episode of the cartoon to children by the end of the year and thus make one step closer to the release of the animated series about a healthy lifestyle. The Ministry of Sport of the Russian Federation is interested in a product which makes early development of healthy lifestyle habits possible for citizens of our country,” said Azat Kadyrov, First Deputy Minister of Sport of the Russian Federation.
According to the plan, 52 episodes, each 7 minutes in length, will be created as a sketchcom (short funny story) series. It is expected that the animated series will be broadcasted on Russian TV channels for children and then recommended for an international rollout.
Following the concept, GTO mascots – Potap the Bear, Vika the Leopard, Vasilisa the Fox, Liza the Hare and Makar the Wolfling – will become protagonists of the new series. These characters symbolize strength, stamina, speed and flexibility, and all of these skills are required to pass norms of the GTO complex. Visual images of these characters-athletes were created based on the results of the nationwide competition in 2018.
“Animation is the best way to communicate with our young audience, and they usually take after characters they love,” mentioned Yuliana Slascheva, Board Chairman of the Soyuzmultfilm Film Studio. “Animated protagonists will do sports and follow a healthy lifestyle. I’m sure that authors of the project are going to create striking and charming characters, and children will like them. Together, we may even be able to bring sport-themed cartoons back to TV screens. Basically, no such cartoons were filmed since the release of masterpieces by Boris Dyozhkin back in the 1960s.”
A working group of specialists in animation, cinema and culture, as well as psychology, education, physical culture and sports will be formed to select ideas for scripts.
When the final version of the plot is approved, 4 synopses (short description of events of upcoming episodes) will be developed. At the same time, specialists will outline the personality of every protagonist and create the final visual images of the characters. After the approval of all characters the work on the storyboard will begin.
Voice actors will be chosen on the same stage. It’s expected that well-known athletes and media personalities will be proposed the roles.
Source: Press Office of Ministry of Sport of Russian Federation
Photo courtesy: Sergey Aleksandrov