A cartoon series “Spiritual necklace” is about the legendary shrines of Ukraine: churches, chapels, monasteries and other religious buildings. First editions of the series deal with the churches of Lviv which constitutes probably the biggest architectural heritage of Ukraine.
“In future, we plan to extend the list of the churches and monasteries: we will draw the viewers’ attention to the remaining wooden churches of the western region of Ukraine, the spiritual shrines of Kyiv, the southern and eastern regions of our state. The series is designed for schoolchildren but it is also watched by their mothers, grandmothers, teachers who write positive responses in their letters. Students studying architecture and design also take interest in the series,” said the producer of the Company “Art-Video,” Zoriana Zaniuk.
The new animation product combines 2D and 3D animation. The main characters were created in 3D and all the rest in 2D. “The idea to create such a cartoon was conceived during the work on the series “Legends of Ukraine.” We felt that the subject of the Ukrainian shrines deserves a separate thematic line. The fairy-tale pictures, used as the background, and the movements of the characters are created by animators not only from Lviv but also from other cities of Ukraine. As we retold the known historic facts we tried to visually reproduce the events and process of formation of sacral objects. Our children now watch cartoons created for the Russian money and showing the Ukraine’s formation, development, culture and traditions from the Russian viewpoint. For the many years of independence of Ukraine, nothing has been done to raise the national spirit by means of animation. We have only the famous Cossacks playing football and foreign cartoons translated into Ukrainian (Russian). Meanwhile, Ukrainian animation specialists are appreciated by foreign countries more than by their own one…”
“I watched the first editions of the cartoon about our shrines. I told my acquaintances about them and they support the idea of the “Spiritual necklace. It is our children who need such cartoons the most. The Ukrainian television has not broadcasted anything good, educational, spiritual. The children watch foreign cartoons about various monsters and are frightened by them. The parents bring them to priests to consecrate water over them and read special prayers. As they watch cartoons, children are to receive something positive, learn something new and interesting. What we sow in their hearts today, we will reap tomorrow,” said the senior priest of the Church of Birth of the Holy Mother of God (UGCC) in Sokilnyky, Fr. Volodymyr Pavlyk.
In the nearest future, the project “Spiritual necklace” will be presented in one of the orphanages of Lviv. The series will become a Christmas present to the children.