The winners of the first All-Russian Youth Award SHUM were honored at the National Centre RUSSIA

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A solemn award ceremony for the winners of the SHUM Award was held at the National Centre RUSSIA. Based on the in-person stage, which also took place on December 4 in Moscow, the expert council selected 15 laureates — one for each category and age group.

Sergei Kiriyenko, First Deputy Chief of Staff of the Presidential Executive Office of the Russian Federation took part in the award ceremony. He announced the winner of the "Breakthrough of the Year" nomination, Yana Zaripova, the author of a documentary film about the lives of people with disabilities, "Beyond the Edge of Exceptionalism." 

"This year marks the completion of the Year-Round Youth Educational Centre SHUM. This initiative, instructed by our President Vladimir Putin, will allow the best participants of the forum campaign to receive more professional training and education alongside teachers and mentors. It is very symbolic that this Award takes place at the National Centre RUSSIA, which was created by presidential decree and brings together all that our country is proud of. What you are doing is very important for the nation and is also a source of national pride," noted Sergei Kiriyenko.

At the opening of the ceremony, Dmitry Chernyshenko, Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation, also addressed words of encouragement to the finalists.

"The Award has united over 10,000 young people from across Russia who are shaping the future of domestic media. It proves that the younger generation is interested not only in entertainment content but also in social issues, science, documentaries, and other important areas. It is crucial that the Award’s 11 nominations brought together both established professionals and aspiring authors. In their projects, they showcase the diversity and richness of Russian culture, sharing inspiring stories of our compatriots. Their work increases the number of foreigners interested in living in Russia, participating in joint projects, and fostering international dialogue," said Dmitry Chernyshenko. 

The ceremony also summarized the outcomes of blog tours held in November as part of the SHUM Award. These tours resulted in segments for federal and international media, exclusive interviews, and informative videos about the nuclear and space industries. Additionally, during a blog tour to historic regions, the SHUM Award’s filming team created a short documentary about the lives of young people in the LPR and DPR. The story focuses on youth engaged in rebuilding cities and developing the regions, as well as the blog tour participants themselves. The film will be broadcast on the RT Doc documentary channel. The total reach of publications related to the blog tours exceeded 6 million.

"The SHUM Award is a remarkable conclusion to the season of the Year-Round Youth Educational Centre of Rosmolodezh, SHUM. This year alone, over 10,000 young people participated in its programs. These include the forum, now in its third year, blog tours, and regional educational programs. And now, its new flagship project has become the SHUM Award. Its popularity is genuinely impressive. Even during the application campaign, dozens of in-person and online meetings were held at specialized universities across the country, alongside six unique blog tours: to Donbass, Baikonur, the Beloyarsk NPP, the ATOM Museum, and the offices of VK and Yappy. While not all materials about the Award have been released on social media yet, their reach has already exceeded 140 million. This is an outstanding result," said Grigory Gurov, Head of Rosmolodezh.

Each of the 15 winners received a cash prize of 750,000 rubles, with the total prize fund exceeding 11 million rubles. Awards were presented by renowned journalists, media industry leaders, and distinguished guests. Additionally, the finalists and winners received gifts from event partners: an internship at Lenta.Ru, a certificate granting direct access to the final selection stage for the "New Media Workshop" programs in 2025, priority status in the competitive selection process for the Tavrida.ART young art festival, the opportunity to undergo training in one of the chosen media fields at the practice center of the Tavrida Art Cluster on the Black Sea coast, as well as an internship at a regional branch of the Movement of the First and a position on the children's directorate of the "MediaAttraction" contest finals. 

"Our centre has two key events: the forum, which began three years ago and this year brought together youth from 87 countries, and the Award, whose finals we are attending now. It has garnered significant attention from both young talents and professionals. It’s important to emphasize that all projects and activities of the Kaliningrad SHUM Centre, regardless of their scale, aim to unite our country and foster values such as love for family, defending the homeland, preserving history, developing talents, and supporting science," Governor of the Kaliningrad Region Alexei Besprozvanny addressed the ceremony participants.

The Award is the new flagship project of the Year-Round Youth Educational Centre of Rosmolodezh, SHUM, aimed at identifying and rewarding talented media industry professionals from across the country. During the application campaign, the Award’s website received 10,000 applications from participants across 89 Russian regions. Seventy-five finalists reached the concluding stage, over 70% of whom are residents of regions far beyond the capital. In addition to the Moscow region and Saint Petersburg, the most active regions included Rostov, Sverdlovsk, and Chelyabinsk. 

The organizers of the Award include the Federal Agency for Youth Affairs and the Government of the Kaliningrad Region, represented by the Ministry of Youth Policy. The Award’s founder is the ANO "Festival Directorate." The Award’s general partner is the Rosatom State Corporation, its strategic partner is VK, and its official partner is the media holding Rambler&Co.

SHUM is a year-round youth educational centre, a joint project by Rosmolodezh and the Government of the Kaliningrad Region. The centre annually hosts a forum of the same name, and starting in 2024, the SHUM Youth Award in Media and Journalism was launched. The Award includes 11 categories: "Bright Start," "Front Page," "Opinion Leader," "Professionally About the Important," "Regional Voice," "Breakthrough of the Year," "Chain Reaction," "Connecting Link," "Our People," "Recognition," and "Family Values."

The National Centre RUSSIA was established by decree of the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, to preserve the legacy of the International Exposition-Forum RUSSIA and to showcase the country’s achievements and its citizens on a permanent basis. Federal authorities, state companies, corporations, and regions contribute to the centre’s activities.