October 05, 2026

A Cinematic Counter to the West


A Cinematic Counter to the West
Nikita Mikhalkov shares how a recently created Russian film award will combat looming cultural threats from the West and promote traditional values. Svyatoslav Akimov, Rodina-History.ru.

One year ago, the newly founded Eurasian Academy of Cinematographic Arts gave its first Diamond Butterfly Award. This year, the Academy’s founder, Nikita Mikhalkov, spoke at length about Russia's greatest threats at the United Cultures Forum in Saint Petersburg.

Mikhalkov is a Russian actor and filmmaker. Some of his best-known directorial works are Close to Eden (Russian: Urga) and Burnt by the Sun (which won the Oscar for Best Foreign Film). No stranger to the spotlight, Mikhalkov took to the stage at the Forum of United Cultures in September to share his thoughts on the greatest threats to Russia.

Mikhalkov asserted that Russia is the only country that opposes the Western countries’ non-traditional values. He argues that even the Pope has betrayed traditional values by permitting same-sex marriages, so now it's up to Russia to preserve traditional values. His answer to the world’s dismal state is the Eurasian Film Academy and its Diamond Butterfly Award.

Founded in 2025, the Academy requires films to commit to “promoting and protecting Eurasian, national, and universal spiritual and moral values.” These values may seem familiar, given that the Academy’s founding organization is the Russian Ministry of Culture.

Mikhalkov sees defending spiritual and moral values in Russia’s “divinely inspired” war on Ukraine, which he hopes will awaken Russians “from the darkness we have been dragged into for decades.” He made no comment on the AI-generated art and promotional materials which decorated the Forum stage.

This year, 13 Eurasian countries participated, along with several African and South American nations. Despite Mikhalkov’s insistence that the award is nothing like the Oscars (he said he despises Hollywood’s “dream factory”), a panel of academics gives out eleven Diamond Butterfly awards. To make up for what the award lacks in prestige, it tries to compensate with cash: the grand prize is a diamond worth about $1 million, and each award contains diamonds valued at around $250,000.

Mikhalkov’s long history of sidling up to political power is well-known. In addition to founding the Eurasian Film Academy, he has an amicable relationship with Vladimir Putin. Mikhalkov launched a political TV program called Besogon, where he discusses military strategy, conspiracies, social issues, and Russian identity. Putin is known to tune in.

Whether the Eurasian Film Academy and Diamond Butterfly eventually succeed in shaping global cinematic values or flutter away as a symbol of Russia's cultural ambitions, only time will tell.

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