Ballerina on the Boat is a wonderful summer-y animation about a ballerina who takes a ride on a ship and dances about, practicing her moves at the delight and distraction of the crew. It is a lovely, humorous, and leisurely voyage until a storm comes, which leads to a surprise ending.
There is no need for subtitles, the audio for the story is conveyed completely with lively animation and the music of Alfred Schnittke.
This 1969 Soviet animation was directed by Lev Atamanov, written by Roza Khusnutdinova, with cinematography by Mikhail Druyan. It was first produced by Soyuzmultfilm, and later released in the 2002 collection Masters of Russian Animation.
In 1970, Lev Atamanov won the Romanian Silver Pelican prize for the film, and Ballerina on the Boat won the ICF prize for best film in London in the same year.
