Animated Production Is Not Stagnating

In 2012, it was mainly secondary schools and academies that produced new films. However, it cannot be said that professional animated film is stagnating. Despite facing persistent problems with production and distribution, animators are working on a number of interesting projects. We can look forward to their release in 2013.

The number of premières from last year may give the impression that animated film is stagnating. It was mainly films made in 2011 that were screened at festivals; the same holds true for the four films that went into cinema distribution. The comics Alois Nebel set into motion by rotoscoping was premièred last year, as was the feature film The Blue Tiger (Modrý tiger) which was made by Czech filmmakers in cooperation with the Slovak animator basis. The release of two short films into cinema distribution was also a success. Dust and Glitter (Dust and Glitter) made by Ové Pictures was screened before the full-length feature film A Night Too Young (Příliš mladá noc, dir. Olmo Omerzu). The story, inspired by the visit of animator Michaela Čopíková to San Francisco, is currently going the rounds of the international festivals and has received several awards. The Last Bus (Posledný autobus) can be considered as one of the most successful home-grown animated films of recent years. It was screened in cinemas prior to Le Havre (dir. Aki Kaurismäki). The Last Bus is receiving one award after the other from international festivals.

The on-going problem of presenting short films through the traditional distribution channels is giving rise to slow, gradual changes in the creative environment. Several full-length projects are in the initial development phases. Their distribution should be easier, but their production is all the more complicated. A good example, for instance, is the project produced by Bfilm which seeks to bring eight animators with different styles under one umbrella – a full-length adaptation of fairy-tales written by Pavol Dobšinský. The Kingdom of Time (Kráľovstvo času) is now in the script-writing phase. The film of Patrik Pašš jr. and Peter Budinský (the author of tWins, 2011, which was successful at festivals) Heart of the Tower (Srdce veže), another film by Ivana Laučíková and the full-length 3D animated film Baron Munchhausen (Barón Prášil) being made by Attack Film are in the same phase. If even one of them were to be completed, it would be an event of historical importance – Viktor Kubal made the only two Slovak full-length animated films to date and thirty-two years have elapsed since the last of them was made (The Bloody Lady/Krvavá pani).

Festivals and the Internet are the most extensive distribution channels for short films. The funds invested will definitely never see a return but, with regard to presentation, it is an excellent space as well for more alternative genres, such as short absurd sketches Concerto et Block or The Stories of Mr. Finger (Príbehy pána prsta). The more and more popular animated video clips are also distributed via the Internet and last year the Ové Pictures duo was most productive in this area.

The share of Radio and Television of Slovakia (RTVS) in the production and broadcasting of animated films for children is still small; nevertheless, the interest of authors in the production of children’s films is growing. The co-production of RTVS in the TV series of Katarína Kerekesová Mimi & Lisa (Mimi a Líza) was a great success. The first episode of the series about the friendship between a healthy girl and a handicapped girl was made in 2011 and three further episodes were made in 2012. This year, the first seven-episode season should be completed and broadcast. Fool Moon produced Stones (Kamene, 2010) which achieved great international success; the two-year-old film won a further eleven awards last year.

Vanda Raýmanová would like to follow up on the TV bedtime story tradition, but she is just at the beginning. Her short film for children Who’s There? (Kto je tam?, 2010) which has been successful at festivals, has also been distributed successfully, especially abroad. Croatian and Brazilian television bought the broadcasting rights and the French version of the film is part of Belgian cinema distribution. Her series in preparation The Tots (Drobci) is based on this short film. In addition, Raýmanová is working on another short animated film for children Bob and Mia (Bob a Mia).

Older authors are also making films for children. Ivan Popovič’s marathon with the educational series If I Only Had a Screw Loose! (Mať tak o koliesko viac!), for which he won the 2012 Igric Award for idea and script, came to an end after thirty-six episodes. Radio and Television of Slovakia discontinued the collaboration with the author due to the bad financial situation. According to Popovič’s book which served as the basis for the series, there are still sixteen episodes missing.

Jaroslav Baran also continued in the production of a TV series in 2012, as he completed parts 21 to 24 of Sheeplive (Ovce.sk). The TV series is used for the education of children in eleven European countries and in China. In addition, Baran is making the 3D animated series School Behind School (Škola za školou). The first part was premièred at the Cairo International Film Festival. He is also developing the co-production film Mr. Toti (Pán Toti).

The TV series for children Vim and Tom (Vim a Tom) is the first for Jana Znašíková and Katarína Zegerová from the Animoline studio. In 2012, they made the pilot episode with support from the Audiovisual Fund. After viewing this pilot episode, Czech Television expressed an interest in co-production.

With regard to television animated production for adults, the commercial TV channel Joj holds a significant position. Four new episodes of the TV series for adults Local TV (Lokal TV) were broadcast up to the end of 2012. The series seeks to criticise the Slovak media environment and the means which the media use, but does it in the same way as do the castigated media. Hence, it only fits into the media machinery which lives from the presentation of various attractions. Despite all this, both parties involved deserve to be appreciated – the authors and the TV. There has been a lack of animated series for adults in our country and Local TV is a trailblazer in a certain way.

This brief summary of activities shows that animated film is not stagnating, rather that several projects are overlapping in the development phase. Animators have mainly concentrated their attention on the production of series and on the completion of older author’s projects, such as Fongopolis (Fongopolis, dir. Joanna Kozuch) or Dream and Snow (O sne a snehu, working title of a film by Ivana Šebestová). Even though several episodes of TV series, the film Pandas (Pandy) by Matúš Vizár and the surrealistic Moon (Mesiac) by Ondrej Rudavský were completed last year, they were not released in Slovakia. Hence, unless the conditions alter drastically, several interesting premières await us in 2013.


Eva Perďochová