Moscow facilitates the development of creative industries — Sergei Sobyanin

Today, Moscow is home to more than 113,000 large and small businesses engaged in the creative industries, Sergei Sobyanin shares on his MAX channel.

Creative industries include film and animation, art industry, fashion and design, publishing, IT, video games, music, architecture, advertising, to name a few, their total revenue exceeding RUB 6.7 trillion.

Around 80 per cent of those employed in creative professions in Moscow are related to culture and arts, IT, communications, advertising and marketing, public relations, architecture, and design.

“In recent years, with the municipal support, companies of the sector have demonstrated an increasingly rapid growth. Last year, we launched the Moscow Video Game and Animation Cluster, Phase I of the new Skolkovo Creative Cluster. Forty-four video game and eight animation companies have joined it as residents,” the Moscow Mayor writes.

Source: Moscow Mayor’s channel in MAX messenger

Spanning 55,800 square meters, the cluster is a full-cycle video game and animation dev space with backing at all stages of creation and launch.

The opening of the Moscow Video Game and Animation Cluster was the focal event of the 1 st Moscow International Video Game Week, which took place in the capital in late November 2025. Uniting 800 venues across Russia, including computer clubs, electronics stores, specialized educational institutions, and cultural spaces, it involved major video game and IT companies, industry experts, and video game enthusiasts from around the world. Moreover, the 1 st Moscow International Video Game Week set a national record with Russia’s largest cyber tournament bringing together more than 4,600 participants.

Last year saw the opening of the city art center Moscow Workshops primarily aimed at providing comprehensive support to contemporary artists. Its residents benefit from accessing infrastructure for creating new art works, including 35 professional art studios, a gallery, and a lecture hall.

Additionally, the capital hosted Creative Business Workshops for fashion and design businesses, plus a series of free Protect Your Creativity webinars for entrepreneurs to discuss intellectual property issues.

Phase II of the creative cluster at the Skolkovo Innovation Center is scheduled for 2026, the 74,000-square-meter facility to offer specialized infrastructure for companies developing media technology solutions (e. g., a virtual production studio, a multimedia exhibition space, etc.), in addition to offices for startups and anchor residents.