ARTFEED — Contemporary Art Intelligence

Nikita Diakur's 'Fest' Breaks 3D Animation Rules for Adult Swim

digital · 2026-05-05

Adult Swim, Cartoon Network's late-night programming block, released Nikita Diakur's animated short 'Fest' on YouTube. The Russian-born filmmaker is known for distorting traditional computer graphics conventions, creating ambiguous, disjointed subjects with glitch-like dynamics set in 3D software interfaces. The three-minute film depicts an improvised rave with absurd yet expressive characters, including a drone pilot and a person possessed by an internal bug. A key scene shows a group on a rooftop launching someone with a bungee cord, replayed from four perspectives: the protagonist, a partygoer filming, the drone, and another observer. Diakur gained recognition through a crowdfunding campaign for his earlier short 'Ugly' and for his bizarre animations on social media.

Key facts

  • Adult Swim published 'Fest' on YouTube.
  • Nikita Diakur directed the short film.
  • Diakur is of Russian origin.
  • The film runs three minutes.
  • It features a rave scene with a drone pilot and a bug-possessed character.
  • A rooftop bungee launch is shown from four viewpoints.
  • Diakur previously crowdfunded the short 'Ugly'.
  • The animation deliberately breaks 3D animation norms.

Entities

Artists

  • Nikita Diakur

Institutions

  • Adult Swim
  • Cartoon Network
  • YouTube

Sources