Leonid Amalrik facts for kids

Leonid Alekseyevich Amalrik (born July 8, 1905 – died October 22, 1997) was a famous Soviet animator and animation director. He created many beloved cartoons. In 1965, he was recognized as an Honoured Artist of the RSFSR, which was a special award for his great work.

The Story of Leonid Amalrik

Early Life and Discovering Art

Leonid was born in Moscow, Russia. His parents were Anna Mikhailovna and Aleksey Ivanovich Amalrik. His father worked for an insurance company. Leonid came from a family with French roots. His great-grandfather, Jean Amalric, moved to Russia from Avignon, France in the 1800s.

When Leonid was seven years old, he had to stay in bed for several months after an operation. During this time, he started drawing and loved it! This hobby later inspired him to make a film called A Girl and an Elephant (1969). This movie was based on a story by Aleksandr Kuprin and also on Leonid's own childhood memories.

In 1925, Leonid began studying to be a set decorator at the State College of Cinema. From 1926 to 1928, he worked as an assistant scene painter at the Mezhrabpom-Rus studio. He learned from famous directors like Sergei Eisenstein.

Starting a Career in Animation

Leonid finished college in 1928. He then joined the Gosvoenkino studio as an animator. There, he worked with Yuri Merkulov and Lev Atamanov. Their biggest project was The First Cavalry (1929). This film mixed live-action with animation. Leonid animated a large military map for the movie. He also invented new ways to combine stop motion and cutout animation. This movie was very popular in the Soviet Union for many years.

In 1930, he went back to Mezhrabpomfilm. He helped direct his first cartoon, Black and White (1932), with Ivan Ivanov-Vano. This short film was based on a poem by Vladimir Mayakovsky. It talked about issues of racism. After this film, he faced some questions from officials. In 1935, he moved to Mosfilm. A year later, the animation part of Mosfilm became Soyuzmultfilm, a famous animation studio.

Creating Soviet Animation

For the first few years at Soyuzmultfilm, Leonid and other animators made films that looked like Disney cartoons. However, Leonid preferred to create his own style. From 1938, he started working on political satire films. These films allowed him more artistic freedom.

In 1939, he teamed up with Vladimir Polkovnikov. Together, they directed a series of three films: Limpopo (1939), Barmaley (1941), and Peacock's Tail (1946). These films were based on the Doctor Aybolit fairy tales. They were some of the first mini-series in Soviet animation. They also helped define the unique "Soviet style" of animation.

During the making of Barmaley, Vladimir Polkovnikov joined the army. Leonid finished the film by himself. After the war, they continued to work together until 1953. Their most famous cartoon together was The Grey Neck (1948). This film was based on a tale by Dmitry Mamin-Sibiryak. It won several awards at international film festivals.

War Years and Later Works

When World War II started, Leonid stayed in Moscow. In July 1941, his house was destroyed by a bomb during a Nazi attack. Luckily, his family survived. They were homeless until writer Korney Chukovsky helped them find a new flat. During the first month of the war, Leonid gathered other animators. They made several anti-Hitler cartoons. These were released in 1942 as Kino-Circus. Soon after, Leonid went to the frontline and later ended up in a hospital. He also worked at the Voenttechfilm studio.

From 1954, Leonid started directing films on his own. Many of his films were based on fairy tales by his friend Vladimir Suteev. He also adapted satirical tales by Sergey Mikhalkov. These stories were for both children and adults.

In 1958, he directed The Cat's House. This was an animated musical based on a fairy tale by Samuil Marshak. It won first prize at a film festival in Venice. One of his most popular films was Thumbelina (1964). This was an adaptation of Hans Christian Andersen's famous fairy tale. His last film was Terem-Teremok (1971). After that, he retired from the animation industry.

Leonid Amalrik passed away in 1997. He was buried in Moscow. His wife, Nadezhda Mikhailovna Privalova, was an artist. She worked with him on many of his films.

Films

See also

• History of Russian animation