Yuriy Norshteyn: Making the Overcoat

Yuriy Norshteyn: Making the Overcoat (2019) blends Documentary elements. Top cast includes Yuri Norstein, Tanya Usvayskaya, and Maksim Granik. The narrative builds around escalating stakes, urgent decisions, and action-driven momentum.

Actor: Yuri Norstein

Yuriy Norshteyn, Russia’s most renowned animator, has crafted many brilliant works, including his award-winning Tale of Tales and Hedgehog in the Fog. He is revered by animation creators across the globe, most notably Japanese masters Osamu Tezuka, Hayao Miyazaki and Isao Takahata. Forty years ago, Norshteyn began work on an ambitious adaptation of Nikolai Gogol’s The Overcoat, but after completing 25 minutes of the film, the project stalled and has been shelved for many years. A crew visits Norshteyn’s studio and finds there mountains of sketches, character studies and a shooting table covered with dust. Norshteyn himself talks about its current status and the anguish and passion that has gone into its creation.