Dmitry Naumovich Babichenko (May 17, 1901 – July 30, 1991) (Place of birth: Zhitomir) – Soviet filmmaker-animator, master of drawing animation, script writer, artist

Born May 7, 1901 in the city of Zhitomir. He received his higher education at the Academy of Plastic Arts in Kiev. He worked as a cartoonist in magazines and newspapers first in Kiev, then in Moscow, as an artist in the workshop of artistic animation at the Soyuzkino film studios, Mezhrabpomfilm. Further creative activity of Babichenko is connected with the Soyuzmultfilm studio. There he became one of the leading directors of the studio.

Working in different genres, Dmitry Babichenko became famous first and foremost as a director and director of fairy-tales. In the 1950s he created bright, unforgettable works that were included in the history of domestic animation. In 1956-1957 he was awarded with prizes at the All-Union Film Festival his films “A Million in a Sack” and “Greetings to Friends!”. The cartoon “Little Shego” received a diploma at the International Film Festival in Venice. There, in 1958, the prize received a cartoon “The First Violin.”

Particularly fruitful was Babichenko’s collaboration with Ivanov-Vano. In 1959 they shot the cartoon “The Adventures of Pinocchio” by Tolstoy’s fairy tale “The Golden Key”, which was included in the classic of Russian animation. The film was awarded the First Prize at the 2nd WCF in Minsk (1960).

In 1969-1975 Dmitry Babichenko was the director and artistic director of the animation studio under the Creative Association “Ekran”.

He died on July 30, 1991.