Russian filmmaker Kirill Sokolov will direct his first animated feature, “Alone in the Ocean”, based on freediver and oceanographer Slava Kurilov’s 1974 escape from the Soviet Union. The project matters because it will use a hybrid animated approach to portray both Kurilov’s dangerous physical journey and his pursuit of professional and personal freedom.

Kurilov escaped by jumping from a Soviet cruise ship in the Pacific, then swam alone for nearly three days before reaching Siargao in the Philippines. Adapted from his posthumously published autobiography, the film will combine live action, motion capture, rotoscoping, 2D and 3D animation, and water simulation; it is produced by Lazy Sunday and The Media Company, which are seeking European partners.