Aleksandr Lukich Ptushko was a renowned Soviet filmmaker, animation director, and fantasy film maker, renowned for his innovative and visually stunning works. Born on April 19, 1900, Ptushko would go on to become a People's Artist of the USSR in 1969.
Often referred to as "the Soviet Walt Disney" due to his early prominence in animation in the Soviet Union, Ptushko's work was more akin to that of Willis H. O'Brien or Ray Harryhausen, fellow pioneers in the field of animation and special effects. Additionally, critics such as Tim Lucas and Alan Upchurch have drawn parallels between Ptushko's work and that of Italian filmmaker Mario Bava, who was known for his innovative use of color cinematography and special effects in fantasy and horror films.
Ptushko began his career as a director and animator of stop motion short films, before transitioning to feature-length films that combined live action, stop motion, creative special effects, and Russian mythology. Throughout his illustrious career, Ptushko would be responsible for a number of firsts in Russian film history, including the first feature-length animated film and the first film in color. His works were met with widespread acclaim and popularity, both domestically and internationally, and remain celebrated for their visual flair and spectacle to this day.
