Winners of the I All-Russian video essay contest "Dreams of the Future" were announced

The official award ceremony for the finalists of the I All-Russian video essay contest "Dreams of the Future" took place on June 1 at the National Centre RUSSIA, on the occasion of International Children's Day.

"Our contest 'Dreams of the Future' is, in essence, a conversation about the future of our country and the entire world. The participants, together with their peers, have been searching for an answer to the question 'What will tomorrow be like?'. On this wonderful day of childhood celebration, I would like to wish all the children to always dream and never be afraid," said Natalia Virtuzova, Director General of the National Centre RUSSIA.

Photo: Press Office of the National Centre RUSSIA

The video essay contest "Dreams of the Future" was held for the first time and brought together around 4,000 children from across the country. The project became a platform for the younger generation to reflect on the future. One hundred finalists and their mentors — members of 20 teams from all federal districts — attended the award ceremony at the National Centre RUSSIA.

"I would like to thank the National Centre RUSSIA for this important initiative. It has been proven that societies where science fiction is popular achieve greater success in technological progress. But what is even more important is that scientists who read science fiction as children are generally more responsible when it comes to evaluating the consequences of technological decisions. This is also crucial because the harmony we all strive for is undoubtedly only possible when we dream. I am confident that the participants of this contest will one day join the ranks of our country’s scientists. And many young researchers are already waiting for you in their laboratories," said Denis Sekirinsky, Deputy Minister of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation.

Awards in the 14–16 age category were presented by Yevgeny Kharitonov, Head of the Centre for Humanitarian Projects and Research at the Russian State Library for Young Adults and Chair of the Council on Science Fiction and Adventure Literature of the Union of Writers of Russia; Andrei Konyaev, Associate Professor at the Faculty of Mechanics and Mathematics at Lomonosov Moscow State University and publisher of the popular science media edition "N + 1"; and Natalia Virtuzova, Director General of the National Centre RUSSIA. Third prize went to the team "Dreamers of the Underwater Republic" from the Republic of Dagestan, second prize went to the team "MediaLab 'BioTech-Pushchino'" from the Moscow region, and the winners were the team "Samar-chiki +1" from the Samara region.

"I really enjoyed the event and the performances by the artists. I'm glad our team won second place. I also liked the National Centre RUSSIA itself — it's magnificent and enormous. Everything here is beautifully decorated and lit up with all kinds of colours. We went on a tour, and I really enjoyed both the 'Journey Across Russia' exposition and 'The Birth of Scale'," said Lev Danilkovich, a member of the team "MediaLab 'BioTech-Pushchino'."

Photo: Press Office of the National Centre RUSSIA

Awards in the 17–18 age category were presented by Hero of the Russian Federation and cosmonaut Oleg Skripochka, Director General of the analytical centre VCIOM Valery Fedorov, and Deputy Minister of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation Denis Sekirinsky. Third place among the older participants was awarded to the team "7 KADROV" from the Chelyabinsk region, second place went to the team "Utopian Sci-Fi Writers" from the Republic of Crimea, and first place to the team "Shukhovtsy" from the Belgorod region.

A special prize was prepared by the contest’s partners — the ArtMasters ecosystem for developing human resources in Russia’s creative industries. It was presented by Borislav Volodin, Director of the ANO "National Open Championship of Creative Competencies 'ArtMasters'". The award was given to the team "Samar-chiki +1" from the Samara region.

In the special category "Readers’ Choice Award", presented by the federal bookshop chain Chitai-Gorod and youth media YOUF, the team "Children of the Future" from the Republic of Bashkortostan was recognised. To announce the results and congratulate the winners, Alexander Brychkin, Director General of ORS "Chitai-Gorod — Bukvoyed", took to the stage.

Young participants of the contest visited several expositions at the National Centre RUSSIA: the permanent exposition "Journey Across Russia," which showcases all federal districts of the country, the architectural exposition "The Birth of Scale," and the new cultural and educational platform "Youth and Children in the Space of Opportunities." In addition, the children took part in workshops led by science fiction writers and learned more about technologies and artificial intelligence. After the award ceremony, the popular music band Mohito performed for the authors of the video essays.

Natalia Virtuozova, Director General of the National Centre RUSSIA, announced that the contest will become an annual event, and the number of categories will be expanded.

Photo: Press Office of the National Centre RUSSIA

School and university students from all 89 regions of Russia took part in the creative competition. The "Dreams of the Future" contest is designed to inspire young people to reflect on the future and introduce them to the works of science fiction writers.

The participants were tasked with creating a video essay beginning with the words: "We want to create a future in where...", and including a mandatory reference to a science fiction work from a recommended reading list. This list was specially prepared for the contest by the Russian State Library for Young Adults and the Council for Science Fiction and Adventure Literature of the Union of Writers of Russia, with the participation of the Eksmo-AST publishing group.

The most frequently cited works in both age groups were "Amphibian Man," "Ariel" and "The Head of Professor Dowell" by Alexander Belyaev, "Andromeda Nebula" by Ivan Yefremov, "Roadside Picnic" by Arkady and Boris Strugatsky, and "The Settlement" by Kir Bulychev. The list of the most frequently referenced books also featured the contemporary science fiction masters: Sergei Lukyanenko, Alexander and Sergei Abramov, Vasily Golovachev, Yevgeny Voyskunsky, Isai Lukodyanov, Alexander Gromov, Anatoly Dneprov, Yevgeny Gulyakovsky, Alexander Kazantsev, Anton Karelin, Vladislav Krapivin, and other authors.

The All-Russian video essay contest is held as part of the Decade of Science and Technology with the support of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation, the Ministry of Education of the Russian Federation, the Movement of the First, the Coordinating Council for Youth Affairs in the Scientific and Educational Spheres under the Presidential Council for Science and Education of the Russian Federation, the Russian State Library for Young Adults, the Council on Science Fiction and Adventure Literature of the Union of Writers of Russia, the Federal Agency for Youth Affairs (Rosmolodezh), the ANO "ArtMasters," the ANO "Russia – Land of Opportunity," and the All-Russian Festival "NAUKA 0+," the ANO "Innovative Centre for the Development and Upbringing of Children and Youth," the Startup Village technological conference, and the National Cyber-Physical Platform "Berloga."

The contest is a companion project to the international symposium "Inventing the Future" and is aimed at fostering interest in future design by engaging children and young people in the process.

The contest’s literary partners include the Eksmo-AST publishing group and the nationwide bookstore chain Chitai-Gorod; its social content partner is "YOUF — Your Media About Reading", and its analytical partner is VCIOM.

The project has received support from popular Russian performers such as Erika Lundmoen, polnalyubvi, Mirele, and the band Odnono. The contest's concept was also praised by young science fiction writers, including Antonina Gileva — screenwriter, film director, and author of the Nova Fiction series for the Mainstream editorial of AST Publishers.

As part of the contest, the National Centre RUSSIA prepared a series of practical workshops where registered participants could go through the entire process of creating a video — from developing an idea to final editing. Since May 1, these sessions have been available to everyone in a special section of the website dream.russia.ru.