TV

KVN (КВН; Клуб весёлых и находчивых, or “Club of funny and inventive people”) is a famous Russian sketch-comedy show and game show. It’s been running on and off (mostly on) since 1961—it barely even skipped a beat during the fall of the Soviet Union. For its humor, mentality, popularity, and long-running-ness (and its three-letter title), […]

Interny (Interns, Russian: Интерны) was a Russian sitcom from the TNT (ТНТ) network. It ran from 2010 to 2016. The series features the trials and tribulations of a group of four young medical interns, their mentor Andrey Bykov (Андрей Быков), and the other hospital workers. The show has an original plot line, though many comparisons […]

Golos (The Voice, Russian: Голос) is a Russian reality talent competition. Running since October 2012, the show is one of Channel One’s most popular programs. Golos is the Russian version of the international talent competition The Voice, which began as The Voice of Holland and now has versions in various countries. The winners of the first […]

Voroniny (Воронины) is a Russian comedy television series. Airing on CTC network, for its first ten seasons the show was a Russian adaptation of the successful American sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond. After season 11 (the show is currently on season 18), the show became an original series. As a classic situation comedy, Voroniny does not have a strict […]

Dom-2 (Дом-2) is the longest running reality TV show in the world. When it first aired in 2003, the contestants’ objective was to construct a house while at the same time finding a romantic partner. After contestants have coupled up, they then compete for the house itself. Hosted by Ksenia Sobchak (Ксения Собчак) and Ksenia Borodina […]

Fizruk (Физрук) is a Russian comedy television series. The main story line revolves around an ex-criminal who finds himself working as a physical education teacher. To make it work, he must rebuild relationships with old acquaintances and his family, and build new relationships with his new students and fellow teachers. Airing on TNT (ТНТ) since […]

Hedgehog in the Fog (Ёжик в тумане) is a 1975 Soviet short animated film. It’s rather dark and philosophical, and not exactly meant for children; but even if you can’t understand every word, it’s beautiful and fascinating enough to be worth a watch. The film was directed by Yuriy Norshtein (Юрий Норштейн), a very well-known […]

Cheburashka (Чебурашка) is one of the great classics of Russian culture (one could say). The cartoons, which basically all Russians and Russian language students know and love, aired between 1969 and 1974. The Cheburashka episodes are actually a series of short films—“Crocodile Gena and His Friends” (“Крокодил Гена и его друзья), “Cheburashka” (“Чебурашка”), “Shapoklyak” (“Шапокляк”),  and “Cheburashka Goes […]

The Adventures of Captain Vrungel (Приключения капитана Врунгеля) is a Soviet Russian-language cartoon. It aired between 1976 and 1979 and consists of 13 episodes, each about 10 minutes. It tells of the adventures of the eponymous Captain Vrungel—through song and dance as well as standard narration. The series is based on the book of the […]