Alone in the Ocean

Alone in the Ocean marks Russian filmmaker Kirill Sokolov's first animated feature, reimagining a project originally developed as live-action. The film tells the extraordinary true story of Slava Kurilov, an oceanographer who dreamed of exploring the world's oceans but found those opportunities out of reach in the Soviet Union. In December 1974, Kurilov bought a ticket on a Soviet cruise from Vladivostok, planning to jump overboard near the Philippines. His escape didn't go as planned—he jumped farther from shore than intended and spent nearly three days swimming alone in the Pacific before reaching Siargao island. The project is being produced by Artem Vasilyev through Ireland-based Lazy Sunday, with Roman Borisevich and Didier Lupfer of The Media Company, and Alan Keane serving as creative producer. Roman Sokolov will serve as art director, bringing experience from collaborations on Academy Award-nominated animated shorts. The producers are currently in discussions with potential partners across Europe as the animated adaptation moves into active development.