Liz Adler

Zhivachka

Zhivachka is an animated documentary about my mother’s experiences as a child in Soviet-era Moscow. As the narrator, she tells the story of contraband treats and their resulting socio-political journey. The film uses dark comedy to explore the nature of joy in conditions of scarcity. By centering a defiantly joyful female voice, Zhivachka seeks to subvert the dominant narrative of oppressive misery central to the canon of the Soviet Union. The title of the work, Zhivachka, comes from the Russian colloquialism for chewing gum.

“Through the use of collage, pixilation, stop-motion and 2D animation, Zhivachka pieces together an imaginary Soviet landscape. Ornate chocolate wrappers show Russian cultural references like bears and famous buildings. Red gumballs sparkle like jewels. Characters take form in geometric collage made from family photos and propaganda posters. Disembodied hands guide gumballs from heads of state to the hands of well-connected children; others shoot envious looks. This multi-media experimentation is inspired by the work of Russian animator Fyodor Khitruk (Man in the Frame (1966), Film Film Film (1968)), the viral independent shorts of animator Don Hertzfeldt (Rejected (2000), World of Tomorrow (2017)), and the playfully satirical collages of Dadaist Hannah Höch. The film is underscored by a soundtrack composed by my paternal grandfather, Yefim Adler, in his work with the Moscow Children’s Choir. ”