From May 5 to 8, the Kaliningrad Region is hosting the Media School for International Content Creators, organized by the World Youth Festival Directorate and SHUM Youth Media Development Center. The event brings together around 50 content creators from different countries of the world – including representatives from Abkhazia, Armenia, Belgium, Bolivia, the United Kingdom, India, Indonesia, Madagascar, and others. Their total audience exceeds 34 million people. The Media School allows participants not only to improve their professional skills and exchange experience with their Russian colleagues, but also to get to know Russia better and delight their followers with content from the Russia itself.
"Today in the world we are witnessing centrifugal forces – the international community is fragmenting along various lines. But you – you are doing the opposite. You are uniting, building a shared agenda, and staying committed to dialogue. This is a great opportunity to exchange views and create lasting connections," Maria Zakharova, Director of the Department of Information and Press of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation and official spokesperson of the Russian Foreign Ministry stressed.
At the opening of the Media School, welcoming remarks were delivered to the participants by Maria Zakharova, Director of the Department of Information and Press of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation and official spokesperson of the Russian Foreign Ministry; Vakhtang Khiklandze, Deputy Director General for External Communications of the World Youth Festival Directorate; Gennady Guryanov, Director of the Artificial Intelligence Technology Development Autonomous Non‑Profit Organization, and Tatiana Mandrykina, Head of SHUM Youth Media Development Center.
"The Media School in the Kaliningrad Region brings together around 50 content creators from 25 countries – from Abkhazia to the United Kingdom and India. After the end of the Media School program, the international content creators will go on a blog tour of the Kaliningrad Region and will also take part in an excursion program in Moscow. The events are timed to coincide with the 81st anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War. Participants will visit memorial sites of the events of the Great Patriotic War. All of this will allow participants to experience the heroism of Soviet soldiers in the struggle for peace in-person. Content creators will share everything they see with their audiences back home – making yet another important contribution to preserving the memory of the Great Patriotic War," said Grigory Gurov, Head of Rosmolodezh.
The Media School program focuses on three key areas: analyzing media consumption and how media influence works; mastering digital promotion tools; and using AI in content production. Participants will learn how to reach a target audience, adapt their media products to different cultural contexts, and create content that is both engaging and trustworthy. A major part of the program is hands‑on: participants will work with mentors to develop their own media projects – shooting photos and videos, writing scripts, and preparing final media materials.
"The Kaliningrad Region is Russia's westernmost region – a small territory where history, modern infrastructure, and an active cultural life all intertwine. It is a space for dialogue with the world, where honest and open communication truly matters. The international participants of the Media School will see what we are proud of – from museums and educational sites to the Baltic Sea and the urban environment. They will meet local people and learn about our values, and they will be able to create content based on real facts and living human stories. I am confident that this experience will allow them to understand Russia more deeply and share these insights with their audiences," said Alexey Besprozvannykh, Governor of the Kaliningrad Region.
Vakhtang Khiklandze, Deputy Director General for External Communications of the World Youth Festival Directorate, noted that Media School participants are already joining the Directorate's International Content Center – a permanent community designed for the exchange of experience, learning, and producing collaborative content aimed at strengthening international cooperation and promoting the ideals of friendship among peoples.
"We believe that the Media School will become for you not only a place to grow your professional skills, but also a space where a global community of content creators is being built. Already today, the content you are creating is making a meaningful contribution to the development of international youth cooperation and strengthening mutual understanding among young people around the world. We invite all Media School participants to cover the largest international youth event of 2026 – the International Festival of Youth, which has already received over 100,000 applications from 191 countries. We look forward to having you as content creators and experts who will cover the Festival and share your knowledge with other participants," said Vakhtang Khiklandze.
Participants of the Media School will visit key cultural and infrastructure sites in the region: the Kaliningrad branch of the Tretyakov Gallery, the Rostec Arena stadium, the Museum of the World Ocean, and the Immanuel Kant Baltic Federal University.
Lectures will be delivered by experts representing government authorities, the media and communications industries, international relations, and digital technologies. The speakers include: Gennady Guryanov – Director of the Artificial Intelligence Technology Development Autonomous Non‑Profit Organization; Maria Zakharova – Director of the Department of Information and Press of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation; Vladimir Beklyamishev – Chairman of the Coordination Council for Youth Affairs in Science and Education of the Presidential Council for Science and Education and member of the Board of the Russian Historical Society; Timofey Bordachev – Program Director of the Valdai International Discussion Club; Maria Petrova – Strategic Projects Manager at VK; Jared Deluna – Technical Director of Social Media at RT International; Victoria Kuzmicheva – Manager of the Author Recruitment and Development Team, Expert at the RUTUBE Bloggers Academy; and others.
At the end of the module, all participants will present their completed media products. A total of 36 content creators will then take part in a thematic blog tour of the Kaliningrad Region and an excursion program in Moscow, both timed to coincide with the 81st anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War. The program includes visits to significant historical sites associated with the events of the war. This will allow participants to gain a deeper understanding of the historical context, appreciate the price that the Soviet people paid for the victory over Nazism, and reflect these insights in their work.
The Media School will take place at the Youth Educational and Recreation Center in the village of Donskoye, as part of the Academy of Strategic Communications project. The organizers are the World Youth Festival Directorate and SHUM Youth Media Development Center. Partners include the Government of the Kaliningrad Region, the Ministry of Youth Policy of the Kaliningrad Region, the Kaliningrad Region Development Corporation, the New Media Workshop, RT Academy, the video platform Rutube, the technology company VK, Putin Team Russia, as well as the "African Initiative" news agency and TD BRICS MALL. The Academy of Strategic Communications is implemented with the support of the Presidential Executive Office of the Russian Federation as part of the national project "Youth and Children."
Overview:
The World Youth Festival took place on March 1–7, 2024 at the “Sirius” Federal Territory, according to the Decree of Russian President Vladimir Putin on the development of international youth cooperation. The WYF-2024 brought together 20,000 young leaders from 190 countries.
In accordance with the instructions of the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin on preserving and developing the legacy of the World Youth Festival, festival events on the territory of the Russian Federation will be held annually. The World Youth Festival Assembly was held in Nizhny Novgorod in 2025 and brought together 2,000 young people from 120 countries. In 2026, the International Festival of Youth will gather 10,000 participants. The next World Youth Festival for 20,000 participants will be held in 2030.
The World Youth Festival Directorate continues the work aimed at strengthening international youth cooperation and developing a community of young people who care about the future of the world.