Today on St Valentine’s Day, “Do Zirok” (“To the Stars”), a theme song to The Stolen Princess animation film (Animagrad, FILM.UA Group), was released. Its premiere is scheduled for March 7.
The track was performed by vocalists of Vremya i Steklo band, Oleksii Zavgorodnii (Positiff), and Nadya Dorofeeva, who gave their voices to the cartoon’s protagonists Ruslan and Lyudmila. “Do Zirok” became the first Ukrainian-language track in the band’s repertoire.
You can watch the music video on all official resources of Animagrad studio and The Stolen Princess animation film as well as on the official YouTube channels of FILM.UA Group and Vremya i Steklo band.
In the animation film, Ruslan and Lyudmila see each other for the first time on the outskirts of Troeschyna neighborhood in Kyiv where Ruslan rescues the damsel in distress. Mila, who has never before left her father’s palace, faces the real world for the first time; it both scares and mesmerizes her. Ruslan and Mila roam in Kyiv by night, tell each other about their wildest dreams and finally fall in love; at this crucial moment, the cartoon characters sing “Do Zirok.”
This romantic and fairytale track also allowed the vocalists of Vremya i Steklo to try on new and untypical looks. Positiff dubbed a cartoon character for the first time and managed to get under the skin of this role, which feels close to him.
“In the very beginning of the process I was told, ‘This character suits you, and your voice is a great match for him!’ Just like Ruslan, I have a romantic and a goof-off side. The song and the video are fascinating; they are entirely against the style I usually work in. This was a cool experience!” Positiff says.
“In ‘Do Zirok’ music video, we are not the way we look on stage,” says Nadya, sharing her experiences after the shoot. “Normally we opt for the fun side, and here the style is classical, but I think it suits us. I feel like a real princess! And I like Pozitiff’s look. After seven years of the band’s existence, I saw him in a new light. I am sure that many fans will be pleasantly surprised.”
To create the theme song for The Stolen Princess, a whole pool of professionals from Ukrainian show business was involved. The arrangement for the composition was written by a Serbian musician, keyboard player in “Okean Elzy” band Milos Elic. The instrumental part was performed by musicians from Kyiv Virtuosos orchestra, one of the most sought-after orchestras in Ukraine who has performed at over one hundred concerts here and abroad this past year alone.
The Ukrainian lyrics to “Do Zirok” were written by Sasha Ruban, director of Mavka. The Forest Song, an animated feature Animagrad studio is also working on.
“Since childhood, my dream had been to write a song, so when the proposal arrived, I agreed immediately. This experience was a first for me, and it is highly symbolic that this song is for an animation film as I’ve been working on animation projects lately. This is how dreams come true at Animagrad studio!” Sasha says.
A day before the music video’s official release, its pre-premiere screening took place in Multiplex cinema (Sky Mall). One of the cartoon’s characters, Hamster Vinnytsky, took pictures with the fans and taught them a dance, animators wearing outfits of Ruslan and Lyudmila handed out greeting cards, and the event guests enjoyed theme games and contests and ate a sweet cotton wool.
The premiere of The Stolen Princess animated film is scheduled for March 7, 2018. You can follow the news of the project on its official Facebook page, Instagram account, and official website.
About the film. This wonderful story happened in the age of valiant knights, beautiful princesses, and battling sorcerers. Ruslan, a wandering artist dreaming to become a knight, met beautiful Mila and fell in love with her; he didn’t even suspect that she is the King’s daughter. However, the lovers’ happiness wasn’t meant to last too long. Chоrnomor, the evil sorcerer, appeared in a magic vortex and stole Mila right before Ruslan’s eyes to transform her power of love into his own magic power. Without further ado, Ruslan sets out on a chase after the stolen princess to overcome all obstacles and to prove that real love is stronger than magic.
Producer: Egor Olesov. Director: Oleg Malamuzh. Scriptwriter: Yaroslav Voytseshek. Art-director: Kristian Koskinen.
FYI. The Stolen Princess is the first animated feature film for Ukrainian and international release in the production line of the Animagrad studio. The film is in the production stage, but the rights for its release have been pre-sold to more than 30 territories, including China, South Korea, France, Poland, Bulgaria, Germany, countries of the MENA region and Latin America. The Stolen Princess became the winner of the 9th competitive selection of Ukrainian State Film Agency; the sum of state financing amounts to about 20 percent of the film’s total budget of 95 million UAH.
