25-03-2010

PRODUCTION: Animated Čtyřlístek begins shooting

By Irena Zemanová

    The well-loved Czech comic book series Čtyřlístek (The Four-Leaf Clover, refering to four life-long friends ) will be adapted into a full lenght animated film combining classic animation with 3D.

    {mosimage}Michal Žabka directs, while Miloslav Šmídmajer of Bio Illusion (www.bioillusion.com) will produce the movie.

    The shooting starts at the end of March, and will last for more than a year.

    The legendary Czechoslovak comic series Čtyřlístek, illustrated and written by Jaroslav Němeček, Ljuba Štíplová and Hana Lamková, started publishing in 1969. After 40 years, it is still a very popular children´s monthly magazine.

    The movie follows the story of the four main characters - Myšpulín the Cat, Pinďa the rabbit, Bobík the Pig and female Fifinka the dog, who live together in a small house and behave like humans.

    The screenplay by Němeček and Lamková places them in the medieval history and the Prague court of Czech king Rudolf II. "We wanted to keep the Čtyřlístek in the way everybody recognizes, but bring something new into their stories. To make Čtyřlístek: The movie was a dream of my life," said screenwriter Němeček

    {mosimage}"Two generations of Czechs grew up with Čtyřlístek, the only comic book that was officially allowed in communist Czechoslovakia. That's why its film version of Čtyřlístek is such a challenge for me. Čtyřlístek is a hilarious, dynamic and modern adventure," Šmídmajer said. His company previously produced such Czech hits as Akumulátor 1 by Jan Svěrák (1994) and the animated film In the Attic by director Jiří Barta, who received Czech Lion for best animated film of 2009.

    Čtyřlístek: The Movie will combine both 2D and 3D animation. "The budget is CZK 30 Million (1.1 million euros)," Šmídmajer announced. Distribution company Cinemart (www.cinemart.cz) co-produced the movie.

    "It was very exciting to take part in such project. As a child, I read hundreds of Čtyřlístek issues. I also collected them, as did everybody else," said Žabka.

    Czech actors Tereza Bebarová, Karel Heřmánek, Bohdan Tůma and Ondřej Brzobohatý will dub the famous four, while Jan Přeučil, Jiří Lábus, Kryštof Hádek and Petr Nárožný are also in the film.

    World release of Čtyřlístek: The Movie is planned for December 2011.

    {mosimage}Contacts:

    Distribution: www.cinemart.cz

    Production:

    BIO ILLUSION, s.r.o.

    Jabloňová 2929/30
    106 00 Prague 10
    Czech Republic
    DIČ: CZ62908049

    OFFICE:
    Baarova 27/43
    140 00 Prague 4
    Czech Republic
    T (+420) 272 650 336
    F (+420) 222 711 470
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