Directed by Sándor Reisenbüchler • 1968 • Hungary

Inspired by Carpathian folklore and based on the epic poem by Ferenc Juhász, this mesmerising animated short by the great Sándor Reisenbüchler imagines a world destroyed and then rebuilt. A fearsome, seven-headed dragon swallows the sun and moon,...

Directed by Aghanaghi Akhundov and Yalchin Efendiyev • 1969 • USSR/Azerbaijan

Produced at the start of the golden age of Azerbaijani animation, Akhundov and Efendiyev’s Jirtdan (meaning “small” or “dwarf”) is a magical little treat in which the titular tiny hero and his brothers must outwit the ...

Directed by Attila Dargay • 1977 • Hungary

A classic of Hungarian animation from the legendary Pannónia studio, Attila Dargay’s charming take on one of the nation’s favourite folk myths doubles as a playful anti-authoritarian rebuke. Following a cunning young goose shepherd in his efforts to get...

Directed by Lev Atamanov • 1952 • USSR/Russia

The Scarlet Flower is a 1952 Soviet adaptation of fairy tale classic Beauty and the Beast from master animator Lev Atamanov. Before embarking on an overseas journey, a merchant father asks his three daughters what they would like him to bring back fo...

Directed by Ivan Aksenchuk • 1968 • USSR/Russia

This exquisite Soviet animated adaptation of Hans Christian Andersen’s 1837 fairy tale tells the story of a water-dwelling maiden, Rusalochka, who trades her voice for legs after falling in love with a human prince. The story transitions between th...

Directed by Yuri Norstein • 1979 • Russia

The undisputed masterpiece from the reclusive Yuri Norstein, Tale of Tales is widely regarded as one of the finest animations of all time. In only 29 minutes, Norstein traverses personal and national history in almost abstract sequences that mimic the wo...