Winners Announced at the 4th International Film Festival for Children and Youth “Hero”

The winners of the 4th International Film Festival for Children and Youth Hero have been announced in Krasnoyarsk. The festival’s closing ceremony took place on May 22 at Cinema Park. The festival was established by the Ministry of Culture of the Krasnoyarsk Territory and organized by Yenisei Kino.

This year’s programme featured 109 films from 27 countries, including 59 Russian premieres. The competition programme included 61 films across fiction, animation, and documentary categories for children and young audiences. Festival events were held at 17 venues in Krasnoyarsk, Norilsk, Divnogorsk, Uyar, and Kuragino, attracting approximately 13,000 visitors.

Animation occupied a prominent place in the festival programme. The award for Best Feature-Length Animated Film for Children and Youth was presented to Arctic Heroes, directed by Alexey Zamyslov and Olga Mayborodina. The prize for Best Animated Short Film went to The Son, directed by Zhanna Bekmambetova.

Several animated projects also received special jury diplomas, including Finnick 2 and Homeland of the Sun, directed by Denis Chernov, as well as Leonid Shvartsman: A Tale of a Boy and an Old City, directed by Ekaterina Sharomet.

The festival’s Grand Prix was awarded to The Path, directed by Svetlana Muzychenko, while the Audience Award went to My Grandfather, directed by Svyatoslav Vlasov.

In the international competition, Friends and the Heir by Marcelo Galvão (Brazil) won the award for Best Feature Fiction Film for Children and Youth. Astronomers by Dmitry Pasichnyuk received the award for Best Short Fiction Film, while Nadya, Go Forward! by Anastasia Mulyarova (Belarus) was recognized as Best Documentary Film for Children and Youth.

In the special youth competition “Who Is Your Hero?”, dedicated to filmmakers under the age of 18, the winning film was The New Girl, directed by Tatyana Marinicheva.

Additional special jury diplomas were awarded to The Turtle by Maurice Amiryan, The First Lesson by Maxim Bobkov, and Feel by Lilia Dmitrik.

The festival also presented a number of special awards. Among them were distinctions for actors Vsevolod Klimenko (My Grandfather), Grigory Danishevsky (Philip’s Rules), and Elisey Chuchilin (My Wild Friend), as well as awards for films participating in special festival programmes.

This year’s edition of the festival included screenings, creative meetings, workshops, educational events, and professional networking opportunities. Special programmes were dedicated to the 400th anniversary of Krasnoyarsk, the Year of the Unity of the Peoples of Russia, and the 90th anniversary of Soyuzmultfilm Film Studio.

Following the conclusion of the main programme, the festival’s outreach initiative, Hero Festival Echo, will continue until June 30, bringing selected films to audiences across the Krasnoyarsk Territory through free public screenings.