The Pass (1988 film)

The Pass (Russian: Перевал, romanized: Pereval) is a 1988 Soviet animated short film directed by Vladimir Tarasov, with a script by Kir Bulychov. It adapts the first chapter of Bulychov's novel The Settlement, also released under the title Those Who Survive.

The story begins when a scientific spacecraft from Earth, the Pole, makes a forced landing on an uninhabited planet in a remote part of the galaxy. A radiation leak during the crash forces the surviving crew to evacuate quickly, leaving behind vital supplies such as food and weapons. Over the next 17 years, the survivors build a settlement far from the wreck, reverting to primitive survival methods and using basic weapons to defend against local predators.

The main character, Oleg, was an infant at the time of the crash and knows only life in the settlement. When a new expedition is organized to retrieve supplies from the spacecraft, Oleg joins his friends Dick and Mariana, guided by an elder named Thomas. Along the way, they find traces of earlier expeditions and confront dangerous obstacles. After a series of hardships—including Thomas sacrificing himself to save Oleg—the three reach the ship.

Inside, they find supplies, working blasters, and a cache of food, tasting Earth food for the first time. Oleg discovers his father’s blaster and uses it to protect his friends from a giant lizard.

When he stumbles into the ship’s radio room and accidentally activates a signal, he realizes that learning to operate the equipment may be their only hope for rescue. Taking books from the ship, they return to the settlement, planning to learn how to send a signal to Earth. They are followed by a domesticated creature called "the goat," now with offspring.