Grigoriy Bentsionovich Oster (born 1947) is a Russian author and screenwriter. He has written scripts for over 70 animated films, and "is considered one of the most important living Russian authors of childrenâÂÂs books."
Oster was born in Odesa and spent his childhood in Yalta. After three years in the Soviet North Sea Navy, he studied in Moscow at the Maxim Gorky Literature Institute.
He is the author of many works for children, such as âÂÂA Tale with DetailsâÂÂ, âÂÂPapamamalogyâÂÂ, âÂÂParenting AdultsâÂÂ, âÂÂGrandma BoaâÂÂ, âÂÂBad AdviceâÂÂ, âÂÂFortunetelling on Hands, Legs, Ears, Back and NeckâÂÂ. He wrote the scripts for the animated films âÂÂ38 ParrotsâÂÂ, âÂÂGot That Biting!âÂÂ, âÂÂA Kitten By the Name of WoofâÂÂ, âÂÂYoung MonkeysâÂÂ, etc., of the feature film âÂÂBefore the First BloodâÂÂ. Four stories were featured in the Yeralash newsreel.
In the late 1990s, Mikhail Epstein and Alexander Genis included Grigory Oster in the list of âÂÂWho is who in Russian postmodernismâÂÂ. In this list of 170 names, Oster is the only children's writer who âÂÂmade a contribution to the development of post-totalitarian Russian literature.â At the same time, the writer never belonged to either the socialist realist, the dissident, or the avant-garde literary camp. According to the observations of critics, his aesthetics are distinguished by "stylistic eclecticism, subtext, citation, play of signs, irony, parody and stylization."
In 2004, at the suggestion of the Presidential Administration of Russia, he was one of the creators of the site âÂÂThe President of Russia for SchoolchildrenâÂÂ.
From September 7, 2008 to July 18, 2009, along with the singer Glukoza, he conducted the program âÂÂChildren's Pranksâ on STS.