Executive Summary

Following the launch of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the Kremlin’s propaganda apparatus expanded not only in terms of narratives, but also in terms of tools. This expansion includes the mass use of artificial intelligence to produce hundreds of video clips and text materials daily in both Russian and foreign languages; the contamination of AI chatbots with disinformation; Telegram bots managing hundreds of websites; large international networks of Telegram channels, TikTok accounts, Facebook Reels, and Twitter/X profiles; fake news websites; and deepfake formats.

For domestic Russian audiences, one of the most significant innovations has been the large-scale production of high-quality films and television series. These projects are distinguished by the extremely effective embedding of propaganda narratives into gripping plotlines: action-driven stories, melodramas for all age groups, and engaging detective and spy thrillers. Their purpose is twofold: to replace Western content banned in Russia and, simultaneously, to inject Kremlin-approved ideas and narratives into mass audiences.

The key difference from earlier Soviet-style propaganda in cinema and television lies in production quality and professionalism. Casting is handled carefully so that both “positive” characters and “Western enemies” evoke emotions, empathy, and interest, allowing for deep audience immersion. Within these emotionally resonant narratives, disinformation is integrated with remarkable efficiency.

Key Examples

One example is the TV series Constantinople, which portrays Russian emigration to Turkey in the 1920s and focuses in detail on the “suffering” of Russian émigrés allegedly abused by cruel and inhumane Turkish and British authorities who treat Russians as subhuman. Thanks to strong acting, high production values reminiscent of Gangs of New York, and precise emotional targeting, Constantinople became the most successful TV series in Russia in 2025. It received an exceptionally high rating of 8.3 on Kinopoisk, one of Russia’s most popular rating platforms (comparable to IMDb). https://www.kinopoisk.ru/series/5895344/

The series The Boy’s Word (Slovo patsana) was the defining hit of 2023–2024, becoming a cultural phenomenon. It depicts the era of chaos in Russia, when streets were unsafe, youth and schoolchildren formed gangs, and many were killed or imprisoned. The narrative “Do you want it to be like the 1990s again?” directly aligns with the broader goal of normalizing violence and aggression in society amid wartime conditions. https://www.kinopoisk.ru/series/5304403/

Other series — GDR, Dear Willy, The Committee, Berlin Heat, and similar productions — present stories about the professionalism of Russian and Soviet intelligence and security services through high-quality thrillers. Unlike outdated Soviet propaganda, these narratives use modern, suspense-driven storytelling that remains engaging even when the viewer recognizes the propagandistic nature of the content. https://www.kinopoisk.ru/series/7129351/

The melodrama Lilies of the Valley offers young audiences a warm, contemporary love story between a Russian woman living in Britain and an ordinary young man from a Russian region. The series initially unfolds like a gentle Western-style soap opera adapted to Russian realities, encouraging emotional attachment to the characters. By the final episode, however, the story smoothly transitions into the male protagonist being heroically sent to fight in Ukraine. https://www.kinopoisk.ru/series/5916296/

Another highly successful animated project, Heroes of the Arctic, targets children and animation fans. It tells a charming story about friendship between a Chinese girl and a boy from the Russian city of Blagoveshchensk. While avoiding overt propaganda slogans, the series uses appealing visuals and a soft narrative to promote the idea of friendship between the Chinese and Russian peoples, as well as the notion that “the Arctic is ours — we have always been there and always will be.”

The cartoon is sponsored by the state corporation Rosatom, whose logos appear on the uniforms of heroic Russian naval officers rescuing the main characters and a lost baby mammoth from villains. The mammoth character is used deliberately to evoke emotional associations among parents and grandparents with a well-known Soviet song from a classic cartoon about a lost mammoth searching for its mother. In this version, the mammoth’s journey unfolds alongside a Chinese girl, with support from the Russian Presidential Administration and funding from Rosatom.

The Organizational Backbone

Behind all of these high-quality, engaging, yet fully propagandistic projects aimed at shaping public consciousness stands the same institution: the Internet Development Institute (IDI or IRI in Russian). It is led by Alexey Goreslavsky, a former deputy head of the Russian Presidential Administration’s Public Projects Directorate and a former head of ANO Dialog, the main presidential contractor responsible for propaganda and political interference abroad. Every successful project described above has been produced — and continues to be produced — with IDI’s support. Whether melodramas, animated films, detective stories, thrillers, family dramas, historical films, blogs, or online projects, the entire Russian film and television industry has now been placed on the rails of highly effective, professionally crafted propaganda. While IDI dominates this segment, Goreslavsky’s associate Vladimir Tabak (current head of ANO Dialog) is responsible for disinformation and propaganda campaigns conducted through social media, AI tools, trolls, and related formats — both inside Russia and in Western countries.

Core Narratives

Core narratives promoted through these films and TV series, reaching millions of viewers daily in Russia: