Grown-up Czech animation for grown-up audiences
Acclaimed director Michaela Pavlátová is currently working on a feature-length animated film for adults, My Sunny Maad, produced by Petr Oukropec and Kateřina Černá, of the production company Negativ. Article by Eliška Děcká for Czech Film Magazine / Fall 2019 The story of My Sunny Maad is based on the critically well-received and popular book Freshta (2012, Stork Press, UK) by Petra Procházková, a Czech investigative and war reporter with a wealth of personal experience of the realities of Afghanistan and everyday family life there. At the center of her novel Procházková set the partly autobiographical character of Herra, a foreigner who comes to Afghanistan to live with her beloved husband and his family. The original screenplay was adapted from Procházková’s book by Ivan Arsenjev. However, a variety of production problems, not least among them the impossibility of shooting in contemporary Afghanistan, meant that the production company, which has enjoyed a long and fruitful partnership with Pavlátová, from the feature films Faithless Games (2003) and Night Owls (2008) to animated short Tramvaj (2012, winner of the Annecy festival the same year) began to think in terms of a feature-length animated production. At the time, Negativ had only one feature […] ...
CASE STUDY: “Richard the Stork”. Background of a successful European co-production.
The producer of the film “Richard the Stork” Kristine Knudsen was among the speakers at the international co-production workshop organised by the Association of Czech Animation Film in Prague from 25th October to 26th October 2018. A colourful co-production of four European countries (Germany, Belgium, Norway, and Luxembourg) was screened last summer in the Czech distribution of Bontonfilm. The creators have devised an adventurous story of an orphan sparrow that grows up in a family of storks, who the sparrow decides to follow on their long journey to Africa. The film was sold to 155 countries and seen by over 3.6 million viewers. Kristine Knudsen, who in her own words devoted 9 years of her life to the film, told the audience – consisting mainly of professional producers – what was behind its success and what the criteria and pitfalls of European distribution are. CRITERIA OF SUCCESS AND CHALLENGES FROM DEVELOPMENT TO DISTRIBUTION Can you define the biggest challenge of the project? Right from the very beginning it was the theme: we came up with an original topic that nobody knew. In addition, Germany is a fairly conservative market. But we were lucky that our script was written from the […] ...
Interview with Olivier Noman about international co-production of animated movies
Olivier Noman kindly shared his co-production experiences during seminar of co-production in animation industry in Prague (Czech Republic), organized by the Association of Czech Animated Film (ASAF).He is freelance consultant in business matters and also working in Studio 100 Animation and we talked about main pillar of co-production. Hi Olivier, could you, please, tell us what does it mean co-production in animation industry? Are there any special rules? What does the co-production bring? Hi Karolina! A distinction can be made between official and non official co-production, depending on potential co-production treaty between countries. A co-production agreement can also refer to the ‘European Convention on Cinematographic Co-Production’. Despite all these frameworks and regulations, there are no real special rules for animation. The specificity of the animation is more commercial than legal. It is a genre which travels more easily than live action or documentaries as you do not face the problems of stars or bankable actors. Meeting the interests of broadcasters or platforms in several countries is obviously a good starting point for a co-production. What co-production can bring to you can really be summarized in one word: partnership. In an ideal world each part of the co-production should bring the competitive advantages of its company […] ...
Case Study: The benefits and pitfalls of international co-productions
One of the most inspiring international speakers at this year’s Visegrad Animation Forum conference in Třeboň was Frédéric Puech, director of the French film production company Planet Nemo. The company, which has been operating on the market for 11 years and is part of the larger corporation ANKAMA, has produced over 15 successful television series with 2D, 3D, and interactive content and exports its works to more than 130 countries worldwide. In light of his position, Frédéric Puech will discuss his experience with large international projects and their distribution abroad. “A successful strategy is to move simultaneously in the field of animation and digital content,” Frédéric stated in the introduction to his presentation. In addition to various television series, his company also develops animated computer games, interactive books, and mobile phone applications. The greatest demand for this media is in Asia, where Planet Nemo does most of its sales. The demand for European partners with their own themes is enormous, primarily in China, Japan, and South Korea. In cooperation with our Japanese partners we have developed several series for preschool children, who as a target group form an immense market while constantly demanding new and original approaches. An example might […] ...
