Yuriy Norshteyn: Making the Overcoat

Yuriy Norshteyn, Russia’s most renowned animator, has crafted many brilliant works, including his award-winning Tale of Tales and Hedgehog in the Fog. He is revered by animation creators across the globe, most notably Japanese masters Osamu Tezuka, Hayao Miyazaki and Isao Takahata. Forty years ago, Norshteyn began work on an ambitious adaptation of Nikolai Gogol’s The Overcoat, but after completing 25 glorious minutes of the film, the project stalled and has been shelved for many years. A Japanese film crew visited Norshteyn’s studio and found there mountains of sketches, character studies and a shooting table covered with dust. When will his much-awaited work finally be completed? Norshteyn himself talks about its current status and the anguish and passion that has gone into its creation.