18-11-2010

PRODUCTION: Hedgehog Animated Film in Postproduction

By Katarzyna Grynienko

    One of the most popular Polish comic book characters comes to life in Jeż Jerzy (Jeż Jerzy: The Movie), an animated film now in postproduction. The premiere is planned for 18 March 2011, with distribution handled by Monolith Films (www.monolith.pl).

    The project was initiated by the Polish company Paisa Films (www.paisafilms.pl) in 2007, and in 2009 PRODUKCJA film studio came onto the project. The cast of voices given to animated characters includes popular Polish actors Borys Szyc, Maria Peszek and Michał Koterski. The film's budget is 2.6 million PLN (EUR 660,000), with a 1.6 million PLN of production financing from the Polish Film Institute (www.pisf.pl).

    The film is based on a popular Polish comic book created by Rafał Skarżycki (script) and Tomasz Lew Leśniak (graphics). Since 1996 it was published in Ślizg magazine and as a separate book series since 2002. It is a sharp satire of contemporary Poland with its social groups, politics as well as pop culture. The film will follow the adventures of the cynical, anthropomorphic hedgehog facing the Mad Scientist, who created Jerzy's clone.

    The film is created with the use of computer animation, combining cutout animation with 3D effects. The head of the animation team is Wojciech Wawszczyk, a filmmaker who learned his craft in Hollywood while working on pictures such as I.Robot and Aeon Flux. He is accompanied by Jakub Tarkowski, author of several short animated films which gained his experience at Moving Pictures company based in London while working on the Harry Potter game series. The third director is Tomasz Leśniak, the graphic and animation artist responsible for creating the Jerzy Jerzy character and the comic book.

    "We want to present to the large audience, also the foreign one, an animation of international quality that is artistically and technologically polished; an animation with a swift and funny plot that will also contain a satiric outlook on the customs and faults of contemporary Europeans," said Maciej Ślesicki, the President of Paisa Films and an accomplished Polish filmmaker.

    Production contact:

    Paisa Films
    ul. Bokserska 1,
    02-682 Warszawa
    Tel. +48 22 853 17 10
    www.paisafilms.pl

    Crew:
    Directors - Tomasz Leśniak, Wojciech Wawszczyk, Jakub Tarkowski
    Screenwriter - Rafał Skarżycki
    Production company - Paisa Films, PRODUKCJA
    Co-financing - Polish Film Institute

    Cast:
    Borys Szyc
    Maria Peszek
    Michał Koterski
    Maciej Maleńczuk