The premiere of the series "On the Trail of the Beast" took place at the National Centre RUSSIA as part of the film screenings dedicated to the 80th anniversary of Victory

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The premiere of the Russian series about the Great Patriotic War, "On the Trail of the Beast," took place on 4 May at the National Centre RUSSIA. The event was held as part of the programme "War Stories Come to Life: New Russian Series for the 80th Anniversary of Victory," prepared by the Institute for Internet Development (ANO "IRI").

"It was a great honour and responsibility to work on such a topic, especially on the eve of the 80th anniversary of the Great Victory. And of course, it is an additional honour and responsibility for us that the premiere of our project is taking place at the National Centre RUSSIA. After all, it was created to showcase the best achievements of our country, and the Great Victory is certainly one of the most significant of them," noted Star Media producer Alexander Starikov. 

Guests of the National Centre RUSSIA had the opportunity to become the first viewers of the project, as well as to ask questions to its creators and actors.

"The team worked on the project with full dedication — it was truly genuine. We all need such series to convey the intertwining of historical events and to preserve the connection between generations," emphasised film actor Sergei Komarov. 

The large-scale project "On the Trail of the Beast" consists of 12 episodes and combines a war drama, an action-packed detective story, and historical reconstruction. The multi-episode film offers a realistic immersion into key events of the Great Patriotic War through the perspective of Soviet intelligence officers whose lives intertwine in deadly missions.

"The importance of such series lies in preserving memory. Because, unfortunately, with each passing day, there are fewer and fewer veterans of the Great Patriotic War. It is important to pass this memory on to our generation and our children, who will also create and show new series. And the way we convey this story and this memory will determine how it will live on in our children. I hope we have created a good multi-episode film — in the traditions of classic Soviet cinema," said theatre, film and voice actor Anton Batyrev. 

The events of the series unfold in the autumn of 1942. According to the plot, realising their defeat near Stalingrad, the German command seeks to take revenge at the Kursk Bulge. To prepare a foothold for the future counteroffensive, several elite sabotage groups are sent into the Soviet rear. Their mission is to carry out a number of covert operations, the true goal of which remains classified. However, the outcome of the upcoming offensive depends on their success. A reconnaissance group led by Andrei Losev is tasked with confronting the experienced German saboteurs. The enemy is dangerous, calculating, and seems to possess a supernatural intuition that allows them to stay one step ahead of their pursuers — but the Soviet intelligence officers relentlessly follow the trail of the dangerous "beast." The series is filled with dynamic scenes: viewers will witness espionage intrigues, shootouts, and train explosions.

"Working on the stunt scenes was very exciting — I had to be right in the middle of the action, with real explosions and gunfire going off. And I was very happy to become, perhaps, a kind of adornment to this male story. My character is very interesting and multifaceted — she is truly a real heroine, just like all women of that time in my eyes, no matter what they were doing, whether on the front lines or in the rear," said actress and singer Yevgeniya Malakhova. 

The series was created by the REN TV channel and the Star Media film company with the support of the Institute for Internet Development (ANO "IRI"). The premiere will take place on 8 May on the online platform Wink.ru. Later, the film will also be aired on the REN TV channel.

The programme "War Stories Come to Life: New Russian Series for the 80th Anniversary of Victory" is a cycle of free screenings of new war-themed historical and documentary projects dedicated to the 80th anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War. The series of screenings is being held at the National Centre RUSSIA during the May holidays. The event launched on May 1 with a screening of the series "Taganrog," on May 2 guests of the National Centre RUSSIA had the opportunity to attend the premiere of the film "Then That Is the Road for Us," and on 7 May the film "Victory" will be shown. Each event in the cycle begins at 16:00. You can register for a screening and find more details about the project on the website russia.ru in the "Events" section.