Arctic expedition docu wins International Film Festival

The documentary film based on unique footage which highlights travels of Moscow’s schoolchildren won Travel & Adventure award at Vertical-2023, the 26 th Moscow International Film Festival. 29 films from Russia, Hungary and Sweden reached the final.

The Great Arctic Expedition docu features adventures of Moscow’s schoolchildren at Cape Chelyuskin, the northernmost point of Eurasia, in May 2022. 14 high school students went beyond the Arctic Circle together with traveler Matvei Shparo, director of the Travel Laboratory metropolitan center for additional education, and made video shooting of the brightest moments.

“First of all, this is the victory of our brave young travelers — schoolchildren. Without their determination and desire to open new horizons, there would be no such unique and vivid footage. The participants share their impressions and tell us what it feels like to become a real polar explorer when you are 16 years old. The film has also captured difficult daily routine of the children, such as many-hour marches, cooking in the conditions of permafrost, research; moreover, their meeting with a polar bear was shot. Our team has been lucky enough to collect a unique video material, finishing up with interviews with the guys after returning and mounting all this in one film, which will be interesting to viewers of any age, especially those who dream of pursuing a career in science and the North,” says Natalya Tsymbalenko, the film producer, Head of PR at the Moscow Department of Education and Science.

The film is also remarkable in that a significant part of it tells us about the history of the Far North studies and discoverers, as well as about the tales and legends of the northern peoples of Russia. The information is presented in the form of cartoons that are seamlessly built into the narrative for viewers to easily grasp the facts.

Inspired by Matvei Shparo and directed by Olga Starokozheva, it was created by the team of the Media Center of the Moscow Department of Education and Science. The documentary can be watched on the School.Moscow web-portal or on the Moscow educational channel.

The Great Arctic Expedition is the Department’s salient educational project involving more than 40 thous. Moscow schoolchildren and students into Arctic-related creative initiatives, sports and learning. After the toughest multi-stage competition, the best of them are sent to Far North missions. The activities are organized by the Travel Laboratory additional education center.

Moscow branch of the Movement of the First joined the program in 2023. The project helps schoolchildren and students learn more about Arctic science, backpacking and exploring Russia.

Moscow schoolchildren set off on the Great Arctic Expedition

Involvement of Moscow schoolchildren in research work contributes to development of skills that will be helpful in their future career and also meets the goals of the Success for Every Child initiative under the national Education project.