A character with disabilities will appear in Smeshariki

A pupil of a Russian boarding school suffering from cerebral palsy may become the prototype for a new character in the popular cartoon “Smeshariki”.

Employees of the local charity foundation “Joy of Childhood” together with artists took on the development of the script and the character’s image.

As the representative of the organization, Liana Timerkhanova, who oversees the neurodystrophy department of the orphanage, told the production center that produces the animated series agreed to see the finished versions.

“We have prepared two scripts: one for Smesharikov, and the second for a separate cartoon, where our boy will become the prototype of an independent hero. There is no finished image of the character yet, so far everything is at the draft stage,” said an employee of the foundation.

It is known for sure that the cartoon character is as close as possible to the prototype. The viewer will see a character with disabilities, but with superpowers.

The idea to embody the image of a pupil of a boarding school in an animated hero, according to Timerkhanova, arose mostly spontaneously.

“During one of my visits to the boarding school, the children asked to bring cartoons. To my question “Which ones, about what?” this boy replied: “About me!” My colleagues and I started looking for suitable ones, and it turned out that there was not a single Russian cartoon about children with disabilities. Then the idea arose to suggest doing something similar to the creators of Smeshariki, who have been helping us for many years by sending CDs and other gifts to the kids,” said the curator of the boarding school.

The animated series “Smeshariki” was created in Russia as part of the educational project “A World Without Violence.” It is intended for a general audience. The series tells about the adventures of Smeshariki - unusual spherical creatures living in the Country of Smeshariki, separated from the Big World by the sea. Smeshariki live in a large friendly group, engage in various daily activities, sometimes find themselves in unusual, and occasionally in critical, situations.

In September, the 2008 series of the 99 cartoon series was adapted to be shown on The CW, an American television channel called “Kik Oriki».