"Mavka. The Forest Song"
Film UA Group has revealed the theatrical release of the Ukrainian animated feature, "Mavka. The Forest Song" as well as its international trailer and the star-studded voice cast of the local version. The film by Animagrad Studio (FILM.UA Group) that produced "The Stolen Princess" (2018), will premiere in theaters domestically on December 29, 2022.
The project and new video materials will be presented at the online European Film Market in Berlin, February 10-17, where EFM participants will also have a chance to attend two online screenings of the movie. “Mavka is undoubtedly the most anticipated release in the animation industry of Ukraine. This story is epic, touching and funny all at the same time, which we hope will captivate the audiences worldwide,” comments Animagrad Studio CEO and producer Egor Olesov.
"Mavka. The Forest Song" is the story of Mavka – the Soul of the Forest, a strong unique female protagonist from classical literary fiction and mythology, set in the universe that blends ancient Slavic myths and legends with the modern narrative and novel 3D animation technologies. The animation is inspired by ancient traditions and rituals, ornaments and patterns, authentic visual symbols in costumes, folk melodies of Slavic peoples and also from classic fairytale drama “The Forest Song” by Ukrainian poetess Lesya Ukrainka.
"Mavka. The Forest Song" first made waves internationally when the first teaser was presented at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival MIFA content market in 2017. It gained further acclaim as the only Ukrainian project to be selected to be pitched at the most significant European animation forum Cartoon Movie in Bordeaux for two years in a row. “The distribution rights to the film have already been acquired by 10 companies that operate on 20 international territories, including countries in Europe, the Middle East and North Africa," emphasizes Evgeniy Drachov, FILM.UA Distribution (international sales of the project).
Over the years of its development and production the animated film project "Mavka. The Forest Song" has grown into a cross-media multi-platform IP with a very high level of knowledge among local audiences – Mavka Universe, which brings together people from the creative, technological and business spheres, scientific and public institutions, government agencies. A number of licensing products have been already launched on the market (foods, books, apparel, accessories, branding of spaces etc) and a lot of new ones are in the pipeline (stationary, toys, etc). The film is created with the support of the Ukrainian State Film Agency (USFA), the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine (ICIP) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).