The guests of the festival were greeted by Tatiana Bolysova and fairy-tale characters. Photo: Anna Yurgenson/RGS press Service
The international festival «Peoples of Russia and the CIS» is taking place in Moscow from October 31 to November 5, 2025. The Russian Geographical Society became a partner of the event. The participants of the festival were able to get acquainted with the riches and heritage of the peoples of the Russian Federation and the CIS countries.
The festival, dedicated to National Unity Day, is taking place at several venues in Moscow at once. The forum’s program includes both business and educational events dedicated to the traditional spiritual, moral, and cultural values of peoples, issues of countering destructive behavior in an international environment, the adaptation of foreigners, and the protection of historical memory. The event was organized by the Federal Agency for Ethnic Affairs with the participation of the Russian Ministry of Culture, Rossotrudnichestvo, the Moscow Government, «Moskino», «Gazprom Media Holding», the Russian society «Znanie», and the Russian Geographical Society.
The VR cinema of the RGS is traditionally very popular. Photo: Anna Yurgenson/RGS press service
The RGS paid special attention to the natural and cultural heritage. A lecture hall of the Russian Geographical Society was open for the participants of the festival. The guests were able to experience the folklore heritage, explore the traditional way of life and cultural peculiarities.
The «Peoples of Russia» exhibition shows residents of the Caucasus, Altai steppes, Yamal tundra, and other regions of our country. Bright faces, traditions and customs, culture and everyday life can be seen in each of the 40 photographs of the exhibition. There is also another exhibition of the RGS at the do festival, «The Most Beautiful Country», where you can see the best photos from the most picturesque places in Russia, as well as its inhabitants.
Until November 4, festival guests will be able to visit the VR cinema of the RGS. With the help of modern visual technologies, you can embark on a virtual journey to the most beautiful places in Russia: fly over the nesting grounds of guillemots on the Kola Peninsula, see how clouds form on Ai-Petri Mountain in the Crimea, dive to visit the ringed seal in the Sea of Okhotsk, hear gray whales sing, sail down the Volga, be inspired by a variety of landscapes, visit historical sites and religious shrines of the Republic of Tyva.
Film screenings became a key part of the educational program of the festival. On November 2, the audience saw two movies created with the participation of the RGS: «Baikal. Svyashchennoe more lda» (eng. «Baikal: The Sacred Sea of Ice») and «Zaonezhan Wedding».
The RGS presented the national scene of Russia at the festival. Photo: Anna Yurgenson/RGS press service
The film «Baikal: The Sacred Sea of Ice» revealed to the audience the secrets of the «Siberian Sea». The film crew tried to capture the unique nature of the deepest lake on the planet, its ice dotted with bizarre patterns, as well as the picturesque views that open up during a trip along winter routes. Aleksey Rafaenko, the screenwriter, and Anastasia Portmanova, the producer of the film, talked with the audience of the film. It is difficult, almost impossible, to convey all the beauty and grandeur of Lake Baikal using a camera, but the members of the film crew made every effort to do so. In addition to the beauty, they felt an unprecedented surge of adrenaline, because walking on ice, hearing its crackling is not so easy.
«Our film is not just about the ice of Lake Baikal. It’s about the strength and identity of the Baikal land, reflected in the traditions of the indigenous population,» shared Aleksey Rafaenko. «The place of power — Baikal is not called anything else here. It dictates its own laws. This is the power of the natural elements, a unique ecosystem, and spiritual bonds that are carefully guarded by local shamans. Despite the hundreds of thousands of tourists who come to the local shores every year, the development of infrastructure, and the scientific study of the waters of the huge lake, Baikal remains one of the most pristine and sacred places on our planet.»
The viewers of the film «Zaonezhan Wedding» made a fascinating journey to the end of the 19th — beginning of the 20th century. The move reflects the rituals and customs of this place. The folklore and ethnographic ensemble of the Kizhi Museum-Reserve, the «Bratynia» theater, local residents and students helped create an unforgettable and charming atmosphere.
Denis Knyazev, the author of the international cultural and educational project «Weddings of the Peoples of the World: Cultural Heritage», a member of the RGS, noted that this was not just a movie, but a careful ethnographic reconstruction. The film «Zaonezhan Wedding», which is a part of the «Weddings of the Peoples of the World» series, makes visible the cultural geography of the Russian North: in living rituals and songs, meanings are born that connect the community and the family. The viewer is shown not only the authentic houses from the Zaonezhan villages, carefully preserved in the Kizhi Museum-Reserve, but also the faces and voices of the keepers of the tradition. This work captures the national memory, worthy of research, preservation, and continuity.
The «Peoples of Russia and the CIS» festival will continue until November 5. On November 3, the RGS will also hold a screening of two films at the National Center RUSSIA. The full program of the festival can be found on the website of народыроссиииснг.рф.
Ksenia Kapitonova