Shorts Bay

Classic Russian animated short film from 1975. A little hedgehog, on the way to visit his friend the bear, gets lost in thick fog, where horses, dogs and even falling leaves take on a terrifying new aspect…

This is a story about a little hedgehog and his friend bear cub. The two would meet every evening to drink tea from the cub’s samovar, which was heated on a fire of juniper twigs. As they drank their tea, the hedgehog and the bear conversed and counted the stars together. One day, the hedgehog decided to bring raspberry jam. As he went to the bear to count the stars, he passed through the woods and found a horse standing in a fog, where the hedgehog can’t even see his own pink paw. He is curious as to whether the horse would drown if it went to sleep in the fog. The hedgehog decides to explore the fog.

He finds himself in a strange world inhabited by many frightening creatures (eagle-owl, moths and bat) but also helpful and kind ones (the snail, the dog and the ‘somebody’ under water); that world of silence and rustles, of darkness, high grass and enchanting stars. The hedgehog hears the sound of the owl, which he called freak (Russian: псих). He is so frightened that it seems to him that the owl is very close. He is frightened, but his curiosity keeps him exploring the unknown. The characters Hedgehog and Bear Cub are very kind and friendly. In contrast, the eagle-owl is very hostile, being on the hunt and not taking care of the beauty of the surrounding world.

Based on a story by Sergei Kozlov. In 2003 “Hedgehog in the Fog” won the “№1 Animated film of all the time” at “All time animation best 150 in Japan and Worldwide” contest in Tokyo, Japan.

Directed by Yuri Norstein / Soviet Union / 1975