Live-action world · 2024
Cheburashka: New Year
Чебурашка. Новый год
Published premise · ending unverifiedAnton Maslov’s 11-minute short follows Gena, Valera and Cheburashka preparing their first New Year together. Valera arranges dinner; Gena buys presents. Cheburashka changes his wish from a globe to a bicycle, then to skates. Gena develops a fever, and the child’s priority changes to his friend’s recovery.
Story & key events
Plot details and spoilers ahead.
The published KION synopsis stops at the recovery wish; it does not specify the final scene. The short belongs to the human Gena continuity and must not be confused with the animated Secret of the Holiday from 2020. Gifts become a way to discuss care rather than possession.
Place in the world
The modern live-action Gena is Gennady, a human gardener played by Sergei Garmash. His estrangement from daughter Tanya and his bond with grandson Grisha give friendship a family dimension. He echoes the crocodile’s name and loneliness, but his biography must never be transferred to the animated crocodile.
Keep five shelves separate: the books, Soviet puppet films, Japanese adaptations, new Russian animation and live action. Names and images travel between them, but events do not automatically transfer. A crocodile employee, a human grandfather and a bureau founder can be related interpretations without sharing a single life.