PUSHKIN IN ANIMATION AND THE PUSHKIN MYTH

The article is devoted to the reflection of the Pushkin myth of Russian culture in animation: from Pushkin’s cycle by A.Yu. Khrzhanovsky, who conveyed the perception of Pushkin characteristic of the 1970–1980s, to the animated series Pushkin and... Mikhailovskoye (2023), created by the artist I. Shaimardanov in the spirit of postmodernist trends. The latter simultaneously presents the sacredness of the poet and the “familiarity” of his image brought closer to the viewer. The article indicates the sources of information about the Mikhailovskoye exile, as it is presented in the series; the actualization of the mythologem of the protected place is described, the main features of the mythologized image of Pushkin are highlighted (amorousness, opposition to power, closeness to the national culture, awareness of poetic genius, etc.). The author proves that the principle of artistic world-building in the animated series was compliance with the demands and habits of today’s viewers: the use of modern communication strategies (the format of the series, short episode length, feedback, active promotion of the product) and the established visual traditions of classical portrait painting, Soviet animation and advertising products. The carnival universe of heterogeneous visual and cultural traditions in the story about Pushkin’s biography is based on the syncretic nature of worldviews inherent in myth. This is facilitated by the metaphorical depiction of reality, which distinguishes animation from other types of cinema.