Laughter and Grief by the White Sea is a 1987 Soviet traditionally animated feature film directed by Leonid Nosyrev made at the Soyuzmultfilm studio. The film is a celebration of the culture of the Russian Pomors who live around the White Sea.
A rich American comes to Russia with a task from the government to convert some Russians to the "American faith". The American finds a ragged man named Pronka in the marketplace and makes a bet with him: he gives Pronka money and the opportunity to trade, and if he does not wash for 15 years,...