Poet Vladimir Mayakovsky grabs mail from the mailbox in his communal apartment. He begins to examine its contents. The front pages of the newspapers are peppered with press releases on preparations for war all over the world. Anger and pain invade the poet at the thought of a possible war. But little by little, despair turns into certainty of the final victory of reason over militaristic barbarism. Mayakovsky then unfolds a sketch. By pushing the limits of the frame, he transforms it into a large format and demonstrates the scope of his project: the reality of the XXth century.
This animated film is inspired by the Prologue and the 2nd part (the future way of life) of Vladimir Mayakovsky's poem "The Flying Proletarian" (1925), supplemented by passages from his screenplay "How are you? (1926). Alexander Galich wrote complementary verses.