Mitten(Varezhka)

Mitten/Varezhka(1967/Soviet Union)
you can watch this video in full-length movies.

This movie was made by Roman Kachanov who is one of the most famous Russian animators and a founder of Russian stop-motion animation.

Mitten was the first puppet animation in the Soviet Union and became a classic of world animation during the 20th century.

Speaking of animation, folk tales of fantasy were the dominant before Kachanov started to make them, but this animation reflects the situation of society during that time. He used a theme of a contemporary and realistic approach.

The girl seemed to be good at playing with herself because her mother didn't have time to play with her.  She wanted a puppy from a neighbor but her mother refused her request. So she imagined a puppy in one of her mittens. Rather than imagining, she certainly believed that one of mittens was a real puppy. You may have experienced like this when you were a child.

All of the puppets which Kachanov manipulated in this movie have a very lovely gesture. Since I just started keeping a puppy this year, I can deeply empathize with this story.

The puppet or stop-motion animation movie like this is loved by people beyond the borders without words. That was why I started making clay animation. Mitten is a scripture for me forever.

My rating:★★★★