Animation: a World History Volume II: the Birth of a Style—The Three Markets Giannalberto Bendazzi

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Animation: A World History Volume II: The Birth of a Style—The Three Markets Giannalberto Bendazzi

Eastern Europe

Publication details https://www.routledgehandbooks.com/doi/10.1201/9781315720753-3 Giannalberto Bendazzi Published online on: 17 Nov 2015

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The publisher does not give any warranty express or implied or make any representation that the contents will be complete or accurate or up to date. The publisher shall not be liable for an loss, actions, claims, proceedings, demand or costs or damages whatsoever or howsoever caused arising directly or indirectly in connection with or arising out of the use of this material. Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 14:18 02 Oct 2021; For: 9781315720753, chapter3, 10.1201/9781315720753-3 (KineticForms),Kineformy which becameanexciting abstractfilm by thesametitlein 1957, with music by Adam Walacin´ski. assemblage works. also created In1955Kantor theCricot 2Theatre, where Andrzej Pawlowski (1925–1986)presented hislightshow unwelcomed but tolerated Krakow Group (includingMariaJarema, Jonasz andJerzy Stern Nowosielski) which produced abstractand approach to creation. World famousartist,background designer and theatre director Tadeusz (1915–1990) founded Kantor in1948the 1 art films. in favour of Nehrebecki (1924–1979)are noteworthy. mated drawings, onlythechildren’s films by Wladysław ani- created withanimated matchboxes. Inthefieldof theGuard), years later, withZmianawarty (Changingof (1954), thefirst Polish animated feature film,and, four 1994)distinguishedthemselves withJanosik 10 March Włodzimierz Haupe (Gniezno, 17 January 1924–Warsaw, 1989) and 1914–Warsaw,saw, 13 October 14 August animation. Itwas inthisfieldthat HalinaBielin´ska (War while thestudio inŁódzbecamepre-eminent inpuppet dio inBielsko-Białaspecialized inanimated drawings, cinema, Film Polski. Later on,astu- state of department Slask made productions with animated drawings for the animation. In Katowice, a group named centresfirst of theleaststrickencities, becamethevery Katowice, two of cities largely destroyed anditscapitalrazed. Łódzand Poland outby wasworn theworld conflict,withitsmajor Poland made anamefor himself. Borowczyk undertookthesame tographics, where hesoon before dedicating himself Youth,Sztandar młodych 1957). (Bannerof two made-to-order micro-shorts, Strip-tease (1957)and 1958), raz . . Borowczyk, who filmstogether:Byłsobie madetheirfirst were the then-debuting artists Jan Lenica and Walerian Despite thefactthat Soviet-inspired Socialist Realism was embraced by the regime, Poland always managed tosave an independent After 1956,inPoland thawing toothere wasagradual Lenica hadstudiedmusic, architecture andfinearts (The House, 1957)Dom(The . (OnceUponaTime. . ., Nagrodzone uczucie(LoveNagrodzone Rewarded, 1957)andthe 1 Teiiitr fthis new attitude initiators of The EASTERN EUROPE - n14.‘ems aeavnaeo it!’Fromin 1946.‘We that timeon, must takeadvantage of istimeforeuphoric. ‘This experiments’, stated Jirˇí Trnka struction andoptimism.Atthestudio, animatorswere recon- paralleled by heated debates andanatmosphere of a Beet,1945). their debut short,Zasadilde Vácha and musician Václav Trojan working began on Jirˇíties startedinearnest. Trnka, Eduard Hofman,Josef of thenew Czechoslovakia. Activi- animatedfirst film tobeproducedfirst animators andthe by independent Sensational Attractions, Entertainment.Itwasthe Marvellous man occupation, theatres released theadvertising short In June 1945, shortlyafterPraguewasliberated from Ger Czechoslovakia andPuppets School. thePolish anguished settingsbecame favourite themesof absurdity, inPoland,tory surrealism and as their sense of creativity.able toattain highlevels of resolved theirfrictionsbut, independently, they were both Lenica and Borowczyk to the West. emigrated They never each other,ceased in1958.Within both afewmonthsof ists, marredby theirstrong personalities, andindependent live-action films.The collaboration between thetwo art- cinema. Hemadehisdebut intheearly 1950swithshort, to studiesbefore passionately applyinghimself kind of The country was in turmoil. The struggle for power struggle The was wasinturmoil. country The eiaadBrwzksjitwrso 1957madehis- Lenica andBorowczyk’s jointworks of ˇdek r ˇ (Grandfather Planted epu 3 - Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 14:18 02 Oct 2021; For: 9781315720753, chapter3, 10.1201/9781315720753-3 Czech Communist film). Adam, but thelittle devil immediately spoils Eve and teaches her todance rock ’n’ (and this was the very rollfirst ever . . . tosoundin a when Godstartscreating humans. aclosewatch Godkeeps on course, hedoesmostmischief wittyideas. Of an endlesssuccessionof there belight!Thereislight and God,withthelittleangels’help, startscreating, while thelittledevil doeshisbesttoruinHisplans, using His furtherwork. Heflicksalighter –in vain. Asusual,itdoesn’t work.The Creator therefore Let hastousethefamousmagic formula: last egg, outtohave which isquitespotted, turns been hidingarestless, littledevil. are Oncethehelpers allthere, Godneedslightfor untillittle angelshatch.still having Butthe that warm alottodo. anegg He keeps To gethelpwithHiswork ahead,Hegetshimself n ubro others. For example,and anumber even of Ji their characterfor animation. are not specifically predetermined with artists that For byKamil Lhóták example, merit of Antonín Strnadel, animated filmtechnically, coldly, movement. And wedothe exactopposite. by subjugatingillustration tothe requirements of We even work themostvaried artists[. . .]. difference The between Disney andus? work withabroad palletof To putitprecisely: Walt Disney approached Also, Disney’s humourisanendinitself, dazzle. hisgags Disney influencedtheentire world withhisanimation shorthand,hiscliché. And we only tiedtothat continentby itscontent.Disney’s artisticexpression isactuallyMunich ArtNouveau. Itiscosmopolitanneutralityinart. humour. We intentionallydidnottakeDisney asanexample inanything. Disney’s expression isnotnational; it’s theAmericancartoon.We wantedtobenational even injoking. of andasbitingAmerican to thesharpness Ourhumourisnotassharp to enliven theCzech landscape, Czech people, Ourpeople, Ourthinking. Secondly, we wantedtoalways bemore lyrical,freer –incontrast our was nationality.programming which we quotehere foraspectof historicaldocumentation, first withoutsharingthem:‘The Wewanted leagues. approach This certainlyledthemtobeoriginal andworld famousEduard Hofmanexpressed opinionseven very harsh onDisney, ing theworld indarkness, untilalittlegirl saves humanity. rich manwho stealsthesunfor hisexclusive enjoyment, leav- film (award winner at the1948 Venice a Festival) describes ible andsnatches thegirl from anothersuitor. second The whoers fulfil theirdreams afterthe young man builds adirig - two lov- illustrations,by of tellsthestory turn-of-the-century Kamil Lhóták’s with first, Sun, 1948).The drawings inspired O milionárˇi, ukradl Millionaire slunce(The WhoStolethe který Dirigiblea láska(The andLove, 1948)andZdeneˇk Miler’s remarkable works were Jirˇí Brdeeˇka’s film,Vzducholod´ first Many talentedartistsventured intoproduction, but theonly which wasrenamed afterhimat hisdeath. capital wasreleased by thestudiohedirected from 1946and decade, almostevery animated puppetmovie madeinthe most influentialamongPrague’s animators. a For more than Jirˇí Trnka (whose work willbediscussedindetaillater) wasthe represented three curly haired children wearing stripedshirts. tricks’, referringtoanimation).logo, The by Zdeneˇk Miler, Bratrˇi vtriku(‘thebrothers inshirts’,but also‘thebrothers of bya wittysuggestion Trnka, thePraguestudiowasnamed find unusual stylisticsolutionsandtolook forward. Following artists (Trnka, Týrlová) KarelZeman,Hermína continued to themestookroot someyears later, of thebest conformism artists lookedfor newways to animate. Even when some 58 5 4 3 2 C would comefrom Walt hisdrawing. Disney’ (VladimírBystrov, Thatistheexact oppositeapproach tothat of ‘Eduard Hofman:Osobnost findingtheappropriate andabsolutelycorrect movementto coerce himintoanything that orforce himintoanything andI do soinsteadof ist inthisarea, withoutlosingtheirindividuality, aswe know itfrom theirstatic art.Speakingfor myself: I always topreserve try theartist,not lhuhCehsoai eaeamme f h oitBo n14,Cehaiaosnvracpe h tl ftheirMuscovite col- theSoviet Blocin1948,Czech animatorsnever thestyleof accepted Although Czechoslovakia becameamemberof ´ By real name François Lejeune(1908–82), Jean painterandcaricaturist. Nothingtodowiththe Effel wasajournalist, Tour Eiffel. Austro-HungarianThen Empire, today Poland. h oySrpuesy ht tteBgnigo Everything, there wasdarkness andGod.Inthisfilm,Godisnicelyabsentminded, Holy ScriptureThe says that, at theBeginningof eskoslovenského kresleného filmu’ [Eduard Hofman:A Personality inCzechoslovak Animated Film],Filmadoba,Prague, 1958).

Films withanimated drawings hadadifferent course. Chapter 3:Czechoslov akia andPuppetsakia rˇ í Trnka himself. And still, after the animated film is finished, they remain, each of them,anart- í Trnka himself. Andstill,after theanimated filmisfinished,they remain,each the Frenchman Jean Effel. Czechoslovak Television. ananimated filmstudioin foundation andmanagementof direct theanimation studio. He also participated in the (Paper Nocturne, 1949).In1950,Hofmanwasinvited to Andeˇlský-kabát Angel’s (The Coat, 1948)andPapírové nocturno ized inworks for children, displayed hisverve andtastewith (Krakow, dren’s productions, wasaprolific animator. Eduard Hofman 2009),aspecialistinchil- 1918–Prague, 7March August Fox(The andthePitcher). Václav Bedrˇich (Prˇíbram, 28 1994)directed theoriginaltaleLiškaadžbán 4 August the Bat´a studio, which hehadjoinedin 1942. animation inZlín,at thetechnique of artist who hadlearned February 1921–Nová Ves podPleší,30November 2011), an oslovakia. Itisprobably thefinest film21 byMiler(Kladno, theCommunist Party inCzech- poet andanearly memberof Jirˇímation, itwasbasedonataleof Wolker (1900–1924),a Characterized by inventive drawings andavery limitedani- TeCeto ftheWorld, 1957), Creation(The of complete with funny and distinct animation gags snapshots. directing –acomprehensible toldat story abriskpace, with artistFrantišek Freiwillig) fullyshowed hisstyleof In 1947, Stanislav Látal (Samotišky, 7 May 1919–Prague, Another challenge wasthefeature filmStvorˇení sveˇta 2 16 May 1914–Prague, 1987),who alsospecial- 16May 1914–Prague, 3

5 The Angel’s The Coat(madetogether 4 basedondrawings by not at all American. It is American. Itis

Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 14:18 02 Oct 2021; For: 9781315720753, chapter3, 10.1201/9781315720753-3 drawings andanimation, theUPA way. teasing human envy and covetousness) and very simplified scenarios (inthiscase pushing themtouseepigrammatic of the IronCurtain, animatorsthat side influenced alotof five-minuteSun, 1959).The short wasunpretentious, but who releasedPlaceinthe Omístonaslunci(The ary 2000), Vystreˇil 1923–Prague, 8Janu- (Olomouc,9November matic leapforward wasdoneby debutant František most satisfying. AsJan Horˇejší wrote: 9 8 7 6 above Týrlová all,Hermína andKarel Zeman. Today Zlín,Czech isagain Republic. 1969, pp. 16 and 20. Jan Horˇejší andJirˇí –Ilcinemad’animazioneCecoslovacco1944–1969[inItalian],Prague:C Struska,Occhio magico Jaroslav Bocˇek, Týrlová’, ‘Hermína Filmadoba,Prague, 1964. Jirˇí Brdecˇka, lettertotheauthor(1977). rm14 o18,teodtw fZlínwasnamedGottwaldov,From 1949 to1989,theoldtown of aftertheCzech Communist leaderKlementGottwald(1896–1953). However, Horˇejší added, Recalled Jirˇí Brdeeˇka: As already mentioned,otheranimatorsworked at Zlín: drawn animation, the reallydra- Within thefieldof Despite Hofman’s endeavours, hisyears were notthe fields. thepostwarreappeared inallartistic of courage [. . .] openness, gradual the creative In an atmosphere of socialabove all. reasons for such adelay were [. . .] Production startedbreathing after1956,andthe again animation. to anever increasing limitation inthedevelopment of tendency toover-illustrate asanendinitself, theseled tion. Together with a growing intellectualism and a ageneraldecay inanima - also theconsequencesof my opinion,themostimportantreasons, there were Beside negative influences, external which were, in for children. movies he directed theentire production company of he directed theanimation studio, andalsolater, when was anexceptional managerfrom 1950to1956,when leave behindillustrations andpuppettheatre. Hofman one who brought Trnka tocinema,convincing himto animationkept onitsfeetafterthewar. Hewasalsothe Hofman wasagreat organizer. Hewastheonewho 7 6 8

fragile, fantasticpoetry. order, Týrlová mineslikeable andsimplehumoureven a double reality and double logical the confrontation of the eviltogether against tomcat in in Toylandagent in Revolution ; the sewn characters banding in period:the thisfirst child andthedoll people istypicalof creative method’. ing doll, anditswhirling rocks thegirl tosleep. Inthefollow- alittlegirl puttobedbringslifea imaginationThe of schema. thestory to thepuppetandmakesittissueof out ashortstory. InLullaby, Týrlová reveals herapproach inachild’s dream andcarries ness. A toy comestolifeasif playful- Chicks, 1952]–shedevelops thebasicstrandof dený panácˇek [ImperfectFigure, 1951]toDeveˇt kurˇátek [Nine in Toyland through [Lullaby, Ukolébavka Nepove- 1948]and production. period–that ‘Inthefirst isfrom Revolution beads. tailor’s yarn, measuringtapes, trains, even glass balls of knots onhandkerchiefs, celluloidfigures, dice, needles, bring tolifemass-produced toys, ragdolls, sockpuppets, Toyland, 1947),Týrlová found her world. Shewould her work: itwasintendedfor children. but in one directionmasterpiece; it foreshadowed all of lowing theLiberation, itwasabeginning. Itwasnota in thearchives for over ayear. Shown immediately fol- Ferda Mravenec (Ferda theAnt,1943),which languished pendent work intheZlínStudios. Itwasthepuppetfilm thirty-four she, finally,the ageof created her own inde- later endured adivorce –withoutever givingupwork. At animation from him,andlearning KarelDodal,married Brˇevnov orphanage. Whenshewasfifteen,started denly and,subsequently, upinthe hermother;shegrew early lifewashard. Shelostherfather andbrother sud- We have already metthisartist(1900–1993),whose Hermína Týrlová h oncino tewrdo ty ihtewrdo toys with the world of the world of connection of The Jaroslav Bocˇek outthree singles periodsinTýrlová’s With hersecond film, Vzpoura hracˇek (Revolution in h eiet fatoyshop aGestapo against Lullaby; theresidents of h ceao the dream becomes the Imperfect Figure , the schema of Chapter 3:Czechoslovakia andPuppets 9 ˇ eskoslovensky Filmexport, Imperfect Figure. From

59 Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 14:18 02 Oct 2021; For: 9781315720753, chapter3, 10.1201/9781315720753-3 for me’. woman isstartingsomethingnewcomplicated everything fact that I was awoman. psychological The momentthat a not have too much faithinme, andthis wasdoubled by the the puppetfilm inthiscountry. did The studio leadership theideaof would alsomean,at leastfor atime, theendof Failure would meanthat I could nolongerwork infilm.It not disappointpeople. tofinishthefilmsuccessfully. I had She recalled the timeswhen shemadeFerda theAnt:‘Icould encroaching age. childhood, despite sion preserved thecharacteristics of expres- modate children of inherwork; form her personal children. It canalso be saidthat she didn’t toaccom- try intended for children. goodart mature valuation –thusnourishingtheculture of to connect play with life’s philosophy, childish antics with a Marbledren., shemanagedfullyandeconomically InThe toys tootherobjectscloseandintimately familiartochil- interest expanded from bear witnesstothis. Herscopeof a.k.a. TkeLostDoll,1959)orKulicˇka Marble, (The 1963), Choo-choo Train, 1959),Ztracená Misfit, panenka (The subsequent films,The be they hertalenttook place. beginnings andarenaissance of film, her Týrlová tothestyleandapproach returned of (AKnotontheHandkerchief,kapesníku 1958).With this fruitful use. which she later made with alengthierfilmdimension,of gain wasthe experience shemade onlysignificant The not have anatural, generalbentfor dramatic situations. wasforeignBut theepic toherinspiration andshedid tian Andersen’s Pasácˇek veprˇu˚ Swineherd, (The 1958). HansChris- (Misha theBall,1956),andarendition of Story, 1953),Zlatovláska(Goldilocks,Mícˇek 1955), Flícˇek Belonging to this period are thedramatic type. andhandleapuppetof story epic Trnka andZeman.Týrlováence of attempted totellan ute iueeet fpeople and objects which are subtle, minute events of weaving the anddelicateterse imagination, capable of 1981, p. 22. 60 12 11 10 Then intheAustro-HungarianThen Empire. Quoted inJaroslav Bocˇek, Týrlová’, ‘Hermína Filmadoba,Prague, 1964. Vladimir Kolman, Vom Millionär, DerdieSonnestahl–Geschichte desTschekoslowakischen Animationsfilms,Frankfurt: Deutsches Filmmuseum,

Being afemaledirector wasnoteasyinTýrlová’s youth. completelyonworkTýrlová for exhausted herself point to the third period was turning The The second period suffers from secondperiodsuffers theimposinginflu- The Tasteful andsensitive, clear, Týrlová was‘anartist of Chapter 3:Czechoslov 10 akia andPuppetsakia Pohádka o drakovi (A Dragon Vlácˇek Kolejácˇek (Kolejáeˇek Uzel na

usually neglected byusually neglected men’. 1970). (Paintings, BlueApron, 1965)andMalovánky (The productions, alsoworth mentioningare Modrá zásteˇrka Ostromeˇrˇ u Nové Paky 1910in on3November Karel Zemanwasborn Karel Figure 3.1 after thewar(1945),ZemanandTýrlová (their Cannes FilmFestival in 1946. which wasawarded for BestAnimation at thefirst ChristmasDream),(The hisdirectorial debut, Týrlová,colleague Hermína hemadeVánocˇní sen then on he settled in Zlín and in 1943, along with in-house filmstudio for its own commercials. From Bat’a. (footwear),powerful Zlín firm which hadan started makinganimated commercials. advertising and list) heattended anartschool of a modelmakeranddraughtsman,even apugi- to France, where amongmany experiences (he was in Zlín/Gottwaldov. Asateenager, heimmigrated When theBat’a. managementwasexpropriated Back home, hecollaborated withtheimmensely

Zeman The ChristmasDream, 1948. Karel Zeman,The 12 and died on 5 April 1989 and died on 5 April 1989 11 Amongherremarkable

Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 14:18 02 Oct 2021; For: 9781315720753, chapter3, 10.1201/9781315720753-3 13 A nineteenth-century writer and epigrammatist (1821–56),hewrote writerandepigrammatist thisallegorically anti-imperialistpoemshortly beforeA nineteenth-century he died. Figure 3.2 order thesecret.smartbarberKukulín tokeep The manded tocuttheroyal hair, andthenexecuted in a year, a barber is summoned to the court, com- hides themunderlonghairandabeard. Once Borovský. was asatire basedonanovel by KarelHavlíeˇek was astylisticshock. scenery. Lyricalandinnovative, for most peopleit afantasyinshining,horses, interpret all-glass a Harlequin andaColumbine, alongwithgentle –isimpeccablysubstance –glass animated, and light, and for allbrought lime- himtotheinternational ouk filmuje[Mr Prokouk, Filmmaker, 1948]). Officer,[Mr Prokouk, 1947]), orlaziness (Pan Prok - cess, 1947]), or bureaucracy (Pan Prokouk ourˇaduje with rubbish (Podkova pro šteˇstí for [Horseshoe Suc- genuinely original, bethey thecharacter involved ouk taleswere slightlymoralistic, but funny and shorts between the 1940s and 1970s. Prok The - about ten man-in-the-street would be the hero of the and astraw hat.personificationof This chap withalarge nose, abrush-likemoustache awell-intentioned, scatterbrained on Mr Prokouk, on thepremises. aged tocreate theirown animation andfilmstudios relationship being by then rather strained) man- The featuretteThe Král Lávra (KingLávra, 1950) In 1949,Zemandirected thefilmthat once popularitywithhiscomicshorts Zeman gained Inspirace (Inspiration). mostunpliable The

13 Karel Zeman,Inspiration, 1948. A ighsteer fa donkey and of kinghas the ears A ings. Jan Horˇejší andJirˇí Struskawrote: tfried Bürger’s novel and Gustave Doré’s engrav- Prášil (Baron Münchhausen, 1961),basedonGot- name isZeman’. ‘Méliès didnotdie, heisCzechoslovakian andhis it’. Local criticsproudly against claimed, be turned his conquests will be used to helphumanity or will theresearcher, unablewhetherof tounderstand thesis,sively dealingwiththetragicend modern Spinazzola, ‘Not too many critics noticed the deci- and frequent comicexpedients’. AddedVittorio ‘but there are innumerable beautifulsequences in technique andinspiration’, wrote AndréBazin, ambiance. film suffers ‘The from imbalance, both ett) which maintained Verne’s nineteenth-century (from illustrations by Édouard RiouandLéon Ben- thefilmanditsbackground design nical results of together with live actors. Reviewers praised the tech- featuring animated drawings andmodels the Flag), on Jules Verne’s 1896novel Face audrapeau(Face Vynález DiabolicInvention, zkázy(The 1958),based live action). dinosaurs, while everything elsewas the modelsof thefilm were mals (theonlyanimated elementsof time, discovering ancientani- ascend theriver of four studentswho Prehistory, of 1955)toldthestory tale setinPersia. HisCestadopraveˇku (AJourney into Bird Island,1952), apuppet,cartoon,live-action films withPoklad ptacˇího ostrovaTreasure (The of tocombined-techniquefilms. feature Heturned entertainment. and of humour hand at direction andhisgreat senseof away. pretend they didn’t hearanything, but Kukulín runs adonkey! courtiers The King Lávra of hastheears the palace, thedouble basstellstheaudiencethat a double bass. Whenanorchestra goestoplay to tree iscutdown anditswood isutilized tomake the ridiculousdetailtoawillow tree. Butthen,the court barber, but one day he can’t help confiding is able tosav In 1961,Zemanrepeated thissuccessinBaron work, Zemanreleased In 1958,aftertwo years of But thiswould be hisadieutoanimation-only King Lávra showed Zeman’s self-confident Chapter 3:Czechoslovakia andPuppets i ieadt egvnteps fe hislifeandtobegiven thepostof

61 Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 14:18 02 Oct 2021; For: 9781315720753, chapter3, 10.1201/9781315720753-3 again andexpandedagain it.Gustave Doré(1832–1883)illustrated Bürger’s bookin 1862. Erich version in1875,and GottfriedAugust RaspemadeanEnglish Bürger translated Raspe’s writer in1781.Rudolf bookintoGerman Cecoslovacco 1944–1969 [inItalian],Prague: cˇeskoslovensky Filmexport, 1969. diabolica invenzione’,, No. 139, Cinemanuovo May–June 1959, Milan; andJan Horˇejší andJirˇí –Ilcinemad’animazione Struska,Occhio magico 62 17 16 15 14 Based onareal soldier’s life, tales, legendandjokesabout Baron Münchhausen were collectedandpublished by ananonymous German All quotations onthispageare from AndréBazin,‘Bruxelles’,,No. 134, Cinemanuovo July–August 1958, Milan;Vittorio Spinazzola, ‘La Jirˇí Brdecˇka, lettertotheauthor(1977). From Jules Verne’s novel Deuxansdevacances (1888).

oko thisgreat visionary.work of the invented setsisprobably thequintessenceof live-action, anddrawings, actors orreal setsand feel any difference between animation and knowing them)andreaching higherartisticpeaks. and Ptushko, withoutimitating them(probably barely cinemathat hadbeenproposed by Méliès an ideaof Verne andMéliès. deserving of a playful vitality andfaithinprogress which are adventure cinema, but display limiting definition of nique, Zeman’s subtle, vibrantfilmsdonotfitthe Karelmentary Zemanfor Children (1980). John andMary, Tale(The of 1979)andthedocu- Apprentice, 1977),Pohádka aMarˇence oHonzíkovi shorts),cˇarodeˇju˚vof ucˇenˇ and One Nights,noci (Thousand 1972, a collection (Krabat Sorcerer’s –The tochildren tales:Pohádky tisíceajedné Zeman turned , 1877), the Comet,1970,from HectorServadac Chapter 3:Czechoslov , where Diabolic Invention theviewer doesn’tThe With simplicityandingeniousness, out hecarried Always suspendedbetween marvel andtech- After histhird Verne adaptation, Nakometeˇ (On achievements, althoughwithnewtwists. hausen, Bürger andDoré. Münch- theworldscinema, Zemanenters of time,This inawa Stolen Airship), nika (AJester’s Tale) andUkradená vzducholod’ (The that inhisothertwo filmsBláznovakrosurprising - hisflightonacannonball[. . .]. seahorse; Itisnot ridinga ahugebird; hisreturn in theclaws of theBaron theinvoluntaryrious victory; flightof palace; the naval battle and Münchhausen’s- glo princessBiancafrom the romantic kidnappingof Dore’s engraving enlivens inallitsmagic;the Pegasus; intothesultan’s hisentry palace, which the MoontoConstantinopleonavessel drawn by (Prášil istheCzech namefor Münchhausen) from 15 thefilmmaker builds onhispast y never seenbefore inlive-action akia andPuppetsakia 14 Prášil’s journey 16 carving wooden puppets. assistant. From Skupa,Trnka theartof learned encouraged theboy tostudy artandmadehimhis Skupa(1892–1957), last great puppeteers, Josef maker. the His junior-high art teacher, and one of ablacksmith andadress - thesonof ruary 1912, oslovakian animation. more thananybody elsebrought honourtoCzech- Jirˇí Figure 3.3 Trnka inPilsen(now Plzenˇ) wasborn on24Feb- ishowThis Jirˇí Brdecˇka describedtheartistwho He encouragedustobeserious. but compromises. alsostrict.Hedidnotaccept same from hiscollaborators. Hewasvery kind self-disciplined andindustriousexpected the the time. Trnka alsotaughtusdiscipline:hewas art films, andthiswassomewhat revolutionary at Hemade that animation couldbeanart form. it.Trnkasurpass toshow hadbeenthe first us us tried to equal or his work was such that all of to teach anybody anything. Butthequalityof directly themaster, becausehewastoomodest Jirˇí Trnka wasthemaster. Althoughhewasnot

Trnka

Jirí Trnka. 17 Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 14:18 02 Oct 2021; For: 9781315720753, chapter3, 10.1201/9781315720753-3 19 18 1969; MariaBenešová, G. ‘Ilcinemadi animazione’, inErnesto Laura(ed.),Ilfilmcecoslovacco , Rome: Ateneo, 1960. Prague, 1965. Jan Horˇejší and Jirˇí Struska, Jaroslav Brož, ‘20 let C with thoseminimalchanges required by thenew transitionoccurred smoothly,puppet cinema.The visible hiatus between puppettheatre andanimated cinema withthegreatest spontaneity. Thereisno more thananywhere else, thistraditionentered comedies andpoliticalsatire. InCzechoslovakia, children’s works tovaudeville toclassicaldramas, that wasnotapproached by wooden actors, from radio programmes. Therewasnotheatrical ‘genre’ specialized theatres, newcompaniesand rise of the evenpets gained more popularity because of Mr. Johannes topuppeteers’. puppets, the novelist Jirásek dedicated tale his fairy puppet theatres, theartistAlešpaintedscenesand overturescian Smetanacomposedtwo graceful to puppeteer familiestouredmusi Bohemia.The - Towards the1840s, nofewer than seventy-nine stirred uprebellionforced against Germanization. the Austro-Hungarian oppression, puppettheatres stitute for ordinary theatre withlive actors. During theatre wasadoptedcenturiesagoasaway tosub - tradition’. ExplainedMarieBenešová, ‘Puppet thepuppet .]perhapsbecauseof . [. formances Renaissance andBaroque popularper dition of the tra- Struska answered, ‘[P]erhaps because of such adevelopment inCzechoslovakia, criticJirˇí Figure 3.4 In theyears following World War I,Czech pup- Asked why animated puppetshadundergone

Jirí Brdecka andJirí Trnka. ˇ eskoslovenského filmu – Vypovidá Jirˇí Czechoslovak (20 YearsTrnka’ film – as told by Jirˇí of Trnka), Occhio magico – Il cinema d’animazione Cecoslovacco 1944–1969 [in Italian], Prague: cˇeskoslovenskyOcchio magico Filmexport, 18 - doing itwithenthusiasm’. They came, spokenicelyandsoI started us” [. . .] animated filmsand we’d like you todothemwith and say, “We have astudiohere andwanttodo hiscolleaguescometome Hofman andsomeof liberation, already sometimeinJune, didEduard from that time, such asBrdecˇka. Onlyafterthe of theirco-workers onlyknewsome from Afit.I in 1945,aftertheLiberation. almost unexpectedly madehisdebut infilmmaking making. Having made a name for himself, Trnka were alsofilledwithpainting, illustration, even toy that helpedlife look calminPrague. waryears The thisartisticcontribution Reich inconsideration of NazigovernmentThe lethimoffthelabour for the laborated with many more stage directors as well. various Frejka productions, andcol- designer of Painterby Way Gives thetitleThe toChildren. at twenty-eight, one-man hehadhisfirst exhibition, with whom hewould fruitfullycollaborate. In1940, Frejka (1904–1952)andmusician Václav Trojan, the opportunitytomeetavant-garde director Jirˇí theopera,but Trnka wasgiven the production of National Theatre. politicalsituation The stopped Bedrˇich Smetana’s operaLibuše , tobestagedat the won anational of contestfor designingthe scenery ence, who considered theshows toointellectual. it didn’t meetthedesired response from theaudi- Despite thecritics’praise, itlastedonlyoneyear, as puppet theatre (theWooden Theatre) inPrague. the puppetsandsets. In1936,hesetuphisown theSea,for which healsodirected anddesigned of fromgraduated theschool, hewrote theplay Master ing vignettestoanewspaper. In1935,theyear he living by assistinghismasterSkupaandcontribut- ArtsandCraftsinPrague, makinga School of and scenedesign. communication but withthesameacting means of Drn h a ee a n fthe people saw any of ‘During the war I never During thewaryears ‘Jirˇí Trnka wastheset tolive-action theatreIn 1939,heturned and In 1928,sixteen-year-old Trnka startedat the Chapter 3:Czechoslovakia andPuppets 19 Film a doba,

63 Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 14:18 02 Oct 2021; For: 9781315720753, chapter3, 10.1201/9781315720753-3 64 21 20 Prague, 1965. Jaroslav Brož, ‘20 let C Marie Benešová, Jirˇí Trnka, Prague:C

ations, astory’. thatunderstood apuppetfilm needs concrete situ - was nice, but did notmeananything. we Thus well, but gave anabstractimpression.effect The my oldestwooden puppets, aballerina.Itmoved of went over, too. (Brˇetislav Pojar, Stanislav Látal, Bohuslav Šrámek) and, straightafterwards, someyoung animators to makeitintoapuppetstudio. Trnka went over bouring building andEduard Hofmanhadin mind andtechnicianspenters hadfound room inaneigh- and hemadeplanstoanimate puppets. Somecar theauthor’s drawings, weakened theoriginality of too many middlemen(artists, colourtechnicians) were madein1946.InTrnka’s opinion,however, away from them.Allthesedrawn-animation works dons two strong springs, tauntstheSSandjumps anti-Nazi movie, featuring achimney sweepwho SpringerandtheSSMen,1946)isawell-made,(The anold,populartale. Pérák aSS brisk rendition of petrovští AnimalsandtheBrigands, 1946)isa (The movie, unusually surrealistic for itstime. Zvírˇátka a would later reach withpuppetanimation. undisputed skills, but isstillfarfrom thelevel he with animated drawings, which shows theartist’s the resultBeet, was accepted; was Trnka’s film first Figure 3.5 Chapter 3:Czechoslov Trnka observed: ‘With Pojar, we animated one Dárek Gift,1946)isanalmostexperimental (The Grandfather subjecthesuggested, The Planteda

Jirí Trnka, Gift, 1946. The 20 Headded: ‘From the beginning ˇ eskoslovenského filmu – Vypovidá Jirˇí Czechoslovak (20 YearsTrnka’ film – as told by Jirˇí of Trnka), akia andPuppetsakia ˇ eskoslovensky Filmexport, 1970. - with variousfrom episodes ancientSlavic popular wassimilarto Trnka’s oldwork, structure itself The film. hisfirst the national popularthemeof tage. seven theartistreturned, Then years later, to and thencomesbackwithhertohisnative cot- saves three princesses, theyoungest marries one becomes aknight,defeats three timesadragon, bystory Božena Neˇmcová aboutapeasantwho (Prince Bayaya), takenfrom anineteenth-century freedom, duringuneasytimes. pets. guaranteed the team an almost complete This toon animation, almostnobody cared for thepup- live-action production, andsomewasputoncar them. Whileheavy politicalpressure wasputon tically, noCzech spectator paidmuch attention to author towhom Trnka feltclose. was already present inthetaleby an Andersen, parison withthesimplelifeandnature. theme This headdressesand theelegant are ridiculedincom- the shy little emperor court, the mechanical toys of one, but isapproached here through irony. The movie doesnotdiffersubstantiallyfrom thefirst thissecond ants. Infact,theunderlying themeof which featured solid,spontaneousBohemianpeas- seems very different from Trnka’s previous film, aristocratic placesandfaces, thesubject softness of Empire andcharacterized by theporcelain-like the Celestial Andersen’s tale. SetintheCourtof Emperor’s(The Nightingale, 1948),based on feelingforlyricism; andadeep popularculture. nature; asubtle, butdeveloped: powerful, love of thepoeticsTrnka eventually showed theseedsof on Czech customsthroughout theyear. Italready documentary Mikuláš Aleš, thefilmwasatypeof rather, many stories. Based on a book illustrated by afterthisexperiment, or, indeedtolda‘story’ born live puppets, that is, justpuppetsassuch’. ments for people. That’s why my filmsonlyhave much likepeople, which are justanimated replace- triedtoavoid makingpuppetsthat lookedtoo I In 1950,Trnka madehisthird feature film,Bajaja films These were successful abroad but, domes- Trnka’s secondfeature filmwas Císarˇu˚v slavík Špalícˇek Czech (The Year, 1947),thefeature film 21 Film a doba, - Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 14:18 02 Oct 2021; For: 9781315720753, chapter3, 10.1201/9781315720753-3 until theDukelets thetruelovers andtheplay getmarried, at longlastbeplayed. everybody (includingOberon’s spells, wife, they Titania), pokefunof inthewoodsmasters are Oberon andhisservant Puck.Bydintof in love, hasbeenpromised while, but toDemetrius. Hermia Demetriuschases Hermia at thesametime, he’s chased by Helena. Butthe men have andgointothewood seekshelterthere, for chosen rehearsals. toplay Pyramus LysanderandHermia too; they andThisbe are theAmazons. crafts- The theDuke’s wedding withHippolyta,thequeenof theshow they willgive inhonourof on thepreparations of theatre andintent Athenscraftsmen,fond of magicandenchantments; andthedown-to-earth worldOberon’s of arboreal realm, fullof 23 22 In Quaderni del circoloUgo Casiraghi,‘Il cinema cecoslovacco’, monzese delcinema , Monza, 1962. Quaderni aascascilsrtoso the text. Lada’s classicillustrations of serve Hašek’s spirit,usingcharacters based onJosef by the filmmaker; nevertheless, he managed to pre- TV. the finest works Trnka’s version wasnotoneof several versions have sincebeenmadefor cinemaor todramatic representation, although not lenditself texts,Hašek. Aswith most literary Hašek’s novel does Good SoldierSchweik, (The Švejk 1955) by Jaroslav voják threefrom episodes Dobrý tious adaptation of treated withsuch unpretentious toolsaspuppets. how heroic orsublime topicscouldbe example of Staré poveˇsti cˇeské (OldCzech Legends, 1957)wasan fresco. Considered by many asTrnka’s masterpiece, onewhole mythology beingpresented aspartsof mer Night’s Dream), 1959. Figure 3.6 Sen nocisvatojánskéthree worlds meet:theAthenianaristocracy, by depicted Duke Theseus’s courtandby thetwo quarrelsome couples; In 1954and1955,Trnka undertookanambi-

Jirˇí Trnka, Sennocisvatojánské (Midsum- and Snug could nothave beenmore entertaining’. powerful puppets could be: ‘Bottom was enchanting, at how 1959)that shewassurprised (11 October tricks. CriticDilysPowell wrote in theSundayTimes thantheBard had)who fallvictimtoPuck’sderness treated by theCzech director withmuch more ten- foolish peasantsfrom Athens(Bottomandcompany, commonpeoplesuch asthe excels for itsportrayal of and love: merry, playful film andcolourful.The wasalightpantomimeonyouth masterpiece English ous costumesandsceneries. the Inhisconception, Shakespeare. ské (MidsummerNight’s Dream, 1959),from obvious encroaching polemicagainst technology. nished withhandles, levers andpushbuttons –an fur arobot granny –anarmchair mother tothat of - hergrand a child who goesfrom theloving care of babicˇka Grandmother, Cybernetic (The 1962)tells of whose onlyinterest ishismotorcycle. Kybernetická is totallyinsensitive tothehumanistic ideals, and ayoungster who Passion, of 1962)isthebitterstory an increasingly pessimisticstage, hislast.Vášenˇ (The genre left:thecivic one. tales andparodies toepics. Hestillhadonlyone film, and had experimented withall genres, from experienced all that was possible with a puppet Ugo Casiraghidisagreed: Here, helethisfantasygofree andcreated luxuri- Trnka’s lastfeature filmwasSennocisvatoján- Once afertileandbrilliantartist,Trnka entered Trnka’s otherworks were mainlyshorts. Hehad mannerism. refinements and, inthelongrun, excessive sic torococo), displaying somewhat exaggerated ents but mixingtoomany styles(from neoclas- pantomime, rich withchoreographic expedi - Trnka likestoletlooseinaspectacular, tasteful Chapter 3:Czechoslovakia andPuppets 22 23

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Hand turns tocoaxingandforce.Hand turns Underthehar power. Herefuses,Hand, asymbolof andthe is commissionedtomakeamonument by ahuge potterandsculptor Hand, 1965),hislastfilm.A unmasked andpilloried. in order tohave sex withanaristocratic lady; he’s asArchangel Gabriel preacher disguiseshimself Decameron. In Middle Age Venice, a hypocritical from1964), basedonashortstory Boccaccio’s paní Husa (Archangel Gabriel and Mistress Goose, and hisfaithin life. humour which inspired his full-blooded sense of spirit, and a lyric faith in traditions and their eternal Trnka brought love tocinemaadeep for nature who tothelandfor hasalways resources, turned a people ies’. Rooted inthepeasanttraditionsof hesaid,‘Ihavecountry’, never feltat homeincit- from hisbeingapeasant–poet. ‘Ibelongtothe fifty-seven. 1969,at theageof in Prague, on30December mind isempty’,hesaid,oneyear before hedied worsened hiscondition.‘Myhandisintact,but my work ailment, hecouldnotwork, andthelackof aheart poorhealth.Becauseof activity becauseof didactic). Hand,by today’sThe standards, canseemslow and Passionso that, The He aimedat stressing andstressing hispointagain, funeral. assment hedies–andtheHandgives himagrand Chapter 3:Czechoslov Trnka’s culminated gloominess inRuka(The Derisive, but notresigned, wasArchandeˇl Gabriela Trnka’s role asanational poetactuallyderives Casiraghi wrote: In 1966,theartistwasforced his tointerrupt (As apolemicist,Trnka wassincere but pedantic. eie rsortclgnso othercountries. refined aristocratic legendsof whenappears theartistdealswithculturally cated, onecouldeven say ‘decadent’tendency mostfantastic,sophisti- hisland.The ditions of manner every timeheaddresses thepopulartra- tic, onemightsay realistic, ina classic appears Trnka shows two tendencies. mostauthen- The The Cybernetic Grandmother and Cybernetic The akia andPuppetsakia 24 - face-animation; entire files were filled with mouths, physiognomy and pets clashedwiththeproblem of ing andstructures. Before Trnka, animated pup- for animated puppets, creating rulesfor theiract- ‘realistic’ movements andcharacters. perfectionand a smug representationformal of , for instance)alsosufferfromLegends acomplacent earlier works (OldCzech Dream. Somesequencesof MidsummerNight’sspontaneity. isthecaseof This but uninspired, style. Culture stifledtheartist’s became more cerebral, even fallingintoaprecious, the themechallenged hisexpressive skills, Trnka but isalsothemostopento criticism.Whenever awell-assimilated culture, is therepresentation of maintains onlyrespect for sincere, human lust. worst enemy – falsehood, deceit, haughtiness – yet and Mistress Goose,Trnka aimshissatire his against irony, beenshown onascreen. InArchangel Gabriel by wooden actors, directed withsuch sympathetic delicate andurbane: rarely hassuch subtlemodesty intheforestist wanders by night),but stylistically waiting for the music performance, while the bass- is shown inher nudity tothearistocrats who were endingisnarrativelyThe insignificant(the woman him, think he drowned, and rescue the cello case. case. His chamber orchestra colleagues look for they leftonthebank,sohehidesherinhiscello hislife. They bothlosetheclothes naked love of swims nakedinapond,andthere meetstheno-less- byshort story AntonChekov. We seeabassistashe basou (Novel withaContrabass, 1949)isbasedona ity (as much as their chastity) is interesting. Román s puppets andcartoons),erotic subjects. mrazíci [Two Frosts, 1954],withacombination of GoldenFish,1951],withdrawings,[The andDva 1949]), innovative stories(theshortsOzlatérybce thePrairie, parodywestern Árieprérie– [Song of novels, talesfor children (theniceoperetta-like prolific writer who addresses historicor chivalric and novelists. Hiswork canbecompared toavery Bohemianstorytellers thelonglineof sentative of Trnka isat hisbestwhen developing apoetics Trnka’s work ‘refined’,The ‘baroque’ sideof About thelatter, itmust besaidthat theiroriginal- A great narrator, Trnka istheultimate repre- Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 14:18 02 Oct 2021; For: 9781315720753, chapter3, 10.1201/9781315720753-3 25 Trnka drew withhislefthandand wrote withhisrightone; when underpressure, hecoulddraw animage withbothhands. had acheerful andimpulsive personality. A perfect neoclassicist andaneofolklorist, loved filmsand influence on duringhiscareer.Trnka Hewasa Composer Václav Trojan (1907–1983)hadagreat serious, importantfilmictrend. puppetanimation asa that sanctionedthebirthof artistic achievement, as well as his worldwide fame, would even confront Shakespeare? ItwasTrnka’s during anhour-and-a-half-long feature film;that castic; that they audiences would beable tocharm animated romantic, puppets couldbeepic, andsar Who, inthelate 1940s, would have imaginedthat theirinventionsthus transforming intoclichés. everybody afterthem.Everybody didimitate them, thelanguagepaved theroad for great innovators of movie.Kane lookslikea‘normal’ Actually, those nolessthan(say) Welles’s Orson ‘normal’, Citizen wooden heartharboured even more’. that thepuppethid more thanitshowed, andthat its or dreamy expressions. gave This onetheimpression a change inlighting, they smilingorunhappy gained their heads,undefined look.Bymerely or turning by heads.ing hisactors’ Healways gave theireyes an wrote, ‘IoftennoticedTrnka, while hewaspaint- dramatic experiences.to internal As Brˇetislav Pojar ics togoodactingandfrom representations external actors, Trnka marked the passage from histrion- his wooden their drama. With the immovable faces of logical elements, wasgenerated andtheirmimicry by appearance. were Characters enlivened by psycho- ing, lightingandmovement rather thantheirphysical Trnka’s theirexpressions puppetsdepicted from fram- them thesamecontortionsasanimated drawings. who hadtriedtoloosentheirpuppets’jointsorgive stately movements, thoseartists artisticallysurpassed characterized by containedexpressions andalmost were to be as fixed and sacred asmasks. His puppets, had thesamerole astheatrical masks, andtherefore puppets’ faces. Trnka discovered that thosefaces eyes andeyebrows ready tobesuperimposedonthe In the third millennium, Jirˇí Trnka’s works look The MusicofthePuppets - ized, workaholic counterbalance to the melancholic, highly organ- n pgn ui.Temld fthe venerable and “pagan” music. melody The of though Trojan intendedtocompose“ancient” Old Czech hadsuch anational effect, Legends even at the same time, why the composer’s music in in theoldestCzech folk music tradition,and, Trojan’sand deeply musical abilitywasingrained musical structure couldexplain how naturally Smetana’s operaLibuše. tal partsof its ravishing power, comparable tosomemonumen- thefilmis, with Our Destiny IsGood)at theendof nificent andpathetic chorus Oj,dobrá našesudba(Oh, well aselegiesandhymnist mag- formations. The a mixed chorus, through which heevoked prayer as in anarchaic manner. Healsousedsolovoices and andpercussion,piano, which organ, harp hestylized . Elsewhere heusedtheelectric part inOHorymírovi example, but very low range).Itplayed asignificant createsThis together oneoctave (asaxylophone, for boards (planks), every [board] tunedtoonetone. penter who made it,Mr. Sobotka) hadeightwooden came into existence. sobot (named after the car The the“sobot” them. Thus decided toimitate some of suitable historical instrumentsfor he hispurposes, musical instruments. When he was unable to find of their collaboration, OldCzech: Legends peasant traditions. of musicandfeltthe charm refineddeeply senseof Figure 3.7 ‘A shortanalytical view into some partsof composerpaidgreat attention‘The tothechoice iswhatThis Jan Vicˇar writesaboutthe peakof

Chapter 3:Czechoslovakia andPuppets Václav Trojan andJirí Trnka. 25 director who, hada inhisturn,

- 67 Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 14:18 02 Oct 2021; For: 9781315720753, chapter3, 10.1201/9781315720753-3 another fineproduction, Párbaj Duel),awarded (The at only children. sameyear, The thetwo made filmmakers Budapest,which nolongerwantedtoaddress studios of gave outsideexposure tothe new, inthe soberideasborn the Karlovy Vary andCannesfestivals in1960,thisfilm with (Budapest, 1921–Budapest,1991)madeabreakthrough folkloric tales. In1959,MacskássyandVárnai György European countries,ern favouring children’s films and otherEast- on thestate-sanctioned production typicalof the newgeneration. filmshadbeenmodelled Hungarian Cockerel’s (The shortof DiamondCoin),thefirst félkrajcárja Sándor, in1951Macskássydirected Akiskakasgyémánt animation. post-warHungarian initiator of filmmakerintheadvertising industry,former becamethe (Croatia) on3January 2011. 68 28 27 26 Macskássy Gyula Hungary Journalist, cartoonist,playwright andpainter, Hadžic´ inBilec´a wasborn (Bosnia,thenYugoslavia) on23 April 1922, anddiedinZagreb Surname first, given first, namesecond,according customary use. totheHungarian Surname Jan Vicˇar, Václav Trojan, inhisown FilmMusicof bookImprints:EssaysonCzech MusicandAesthetics,Praha:Togga, The 2005,pp. 37–49.

tdn fpainterandBauhausfollower Bortnyik A studentof fthetwentieth century. of thebestCzech composers music specialistsoneof native andbrilliant,heisnow considered by to chamber compositions. Here, too, hewasimagi- Trojan devoted his talent to ‘pure’ music, especially a scene tone. more thanever, acharacter’s suggest psychology or MidsummerNight’s Dream , where notes, ful score of hill R Tree?)’. stojíš?(Whystruze DoYou StandinaBrook, Plum theoldestCzech folk songsProrˇ,one of kalino, v thesamecharacter from dies from amelody of thesemelo- 6–4 chord). Trojan derived bothof themajor 9th and10thovertones (contourif theovertone series–particularly the6th,8th, of outline, basedonthe6th,8th,9thand10thtones cess Libuše, containsTrojan’s typicalmelodic Chapter 3:Hungary Ceruza és radír (PencilCeruza and IndiaRubber). Shown at ic 95 fe wnyyaso soundtracks, Since 1965,aftertwenty years of Probably even more importantwasthebeauti- ˇ p swl stemld fmythical prin- íp, aswell asthemelody of 26 27 (Budapest,1912–Budapest,1972),a (The BigMeeting,miting (The 1951)wasnominallydirected the EastEuropean countrieswithasatirical short.Veliki its profits Yugoslavia tocelebrate thedetachment of from the satiricalKerempuh magazine ,Hadžic´ decidedto invest bouring Italyhadbecomeunitedandstill was. project: eighty years before, the much more diverse, neigh- maintained stability. Afterall,itdidn’t seemanimpossible aninvasion by theSoviet troops,prestige, andthefearof and linguisticallydisunited, but Tito’s and charm personal wasethnically speech country andsoon.The freedom of andprivate state enterprise, amoderate enterprise tion of guaranteed fullemployment (at low salaries),acombina- munism and social democracy: a mild dictatorship that a‘Fourth Way’via becamesortof aftercapitalism,com- adjustment,YugoslaSoviet- Union.Aftersomeyears of the theworld of undertheleadership munist partiesof thecom- actionandopinionof theunityof the dogmaof and put a question markaccess to the Mediterranean to ing Stalin’s orders. clashforbade The theSoviets tohave thatunderstood hewould gohisown obey way,- insteadof the Nazitroops. Titoletitbeclearly In1948,Marshal proud tohave defeated onherown, onthebattlefield, When, in1945,Yugoslavia wasfreeshealso again, the Zagreb School Yugoslavia: The First Stageof directing career begunin 1957. vár, hisbrief 1927–Budapest,1965)reached theapex of Venice,at theFilmFestival- Tibor(Kapos of Csermák have with her ball. With this film, which won a Gold Lion who daydreams aboutthefantasticadventures shemight Ball with White Dots,(The 1961), featuring a little girl warmongering. entertaining reprimand of both theCannesandOberhausenfestivals, aclever and enthusiasts. Fadil Hadžic´ them. wasoneof afewZagreb-based the state, but wasrather thework of mation. Production ormanagedby wasnotsuggested new YugoslaviaThe didnot have any background inani- Croatia An innovative, high-calibre filmwasApirospöttyös labda 28 A dtro Aseditorof Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 14:18 02 Oct 2021; For: 9781315720753, chapter3, 10.1201/9781315720753-3 founded Film. Duga eatmtdt ieaiae imasneo immediacyand involvement initscontent. he attempted togive animated film asenseof serodio Kako Kic´o artistandanimatorhis debut of asdirector, chief (How Kic´o Was Vukotic´ Born). toimitate didnottry Disney; instead, Yugoslav origin’. (Borivoj Dovnikovic´ Bordo, andUPA, Zagreb manuscript provided by theauthortoGiannalbertoBendazzi, May 2002) by Cartoons manual toMake onanimation then:How Preston Blair. Itwassenttousfrom theStates by Louis Adamich, Americanwriterof 31 30 29 were produced, Czechoslovakian filmsthere. Five shorts of and adegree ceeded by Disney here trialanderror, imitating abitof Vukotic´. Inexperienced intechnique, theanimatorspro- Boris Kolar, Zlatko Grgic´, VladoKristlandDušan vic´, andthenewcomers AleksandarMarks, Zlatko Bourek, brothers, VladimirDelac(1927–1969),Borivoj Dovniko- Croatian-Yugoslav animation, such as the Neugebauer thebestof artists, theartisticteamincludedsomeof efinlater years. self was Borivoj Dovnikovic´, who wastomakeanamefor him- the designerandanimator. Amongtheassistantanimators theproject washisbrother Walter (1921–1992), soul of by NorbertNeugebauer(1926–2009),although thereal their activityinthefieldthey favoured, fictionanimated films. Vukotic´, Marks, Kolar, Bourek andotherartistsresumed Film, Zagreb Since then,underthewhitelogo of horse andZora. bothDuga between 1956and1957,incorporated the1920s, 1930sandeven 1940s. of Yugoslav comicstripandinMiddleEuropean illustration excellent are more likely to be found in the tradition of theUPA filmsinthepress. Stylistic roots of photographs andanimatorscouldonlyviewsome designers Zagreb sued by theAmericanUPA afewyears earlier, thoughthe limited animation. trend This was similar to the one pur Disney anddeveloped thestyleof original imitation of It wasthenthat theYugoslavs startedtoabandontheir this field,andcreated quiteafewsuccessfulcommercials. (within theadvertising company jumpedinto Interpublic) group andanotheroneledby theNeugebauerbrothers required someadvertising campaigns. BoththeKostelac a free-market economy,become amodified of version and educational shorts. By that time, Yugoslaviaducer of had ZoraFilm, apro- (in hisown apartment!) withthehelpof animation, managed topreserve someminimalactivities ing towards schools andhospitalsrather thananimation. spring 1952,untilthefederalgovernment diverted fund- Duga means‘rainbow’Duga inCroatian. The first wasNorbertNeugebauer’s first The Veseli theSillySymphonies. DušanVukotic´ doživljaj Happy (The Event), inthestyleof thenmade ‘The film was completed in one ‘The year. animation and make the film.Within those 12months we managed to learn We had just one Having somegovernmental gained support,Hadžic´ The distributorThe for Filmwhich, thegroup wasZagreb Architect NikolaKostelac, who hadfalleninlove with 31 but onlylastedfrom Duga spring1951to 29 30 With more thanonehundred Chapter 3:Yugoslavia: oftheZagrebThe FirstStage School - the-art graphics. a difficult but poeticfilm very for which heused state-of- DonKihot(Don Quixote,directed hismasterpiece 1961), Art Décoandcreated atenseatmosphere. Finally, Kristl Ivo Vrbanic´ (1916–81),Kristlanticipated arevival of based onBalzac’s which horror story), heco-directed with Feman koža 1960, (Lapeaudechagrin, (1927). In Šagrenska but thefilmshouldbetterbe credited todirector Mladen theJewel, 1959), of Theft talent inKradja (The dragulja geometrical paintingswere certainlystrong andoriginal. tivism issuesandslappedSocialistRealism. Hisabstract/ which introduced theBauhausandConstruc - again theExat ’51group, he hadbeenamongthefounders of not a genius, an extremely gifted artist. In 1951, he was, if andsufferedlent personality from mania.But persecution toZagreb.return VladoKristlhadadestructive, malevo- out much lucktoSouthAmericaandwashoping now to animators, with- whohadmigrated wave thefirst of of 2004),one 1923–Munich, Germany, 7July 24 January the CannesFilmFestival. FilmwaspraisedbyZagreb criticsandaudiencesalikeat at theVenice festival, andtheentire animation sectionof ica’s body. year The 1958wasimportantfor production: Mim- time on,hisdedicationinfluenced andpersonality every- Aleksandar Marks andswitched todirecting; from that a scriptwriter. Soonheteamedupwithexcellent designer Mimica, who did notknow how todraw, wasco-optedas from which neithermoney hehadgained norpopularity. 1955 Mimicahaddirected two live-action feature films mation section.Writer, in1952and criticandjournalist, tobepresented School.first totheZagreb Shown at thePulafilmfestival, thefilm wonan award –the animation by Vjekoslav Kostanjšek andVladimirJutriša. Marks andBorisKolar, scenedesignby Zlatko Bourek and on asubjectby Andre Lušicˇic´, withdrawing by Aleksandar robot Playful (The Robot, 1956) directed by Dušan Vukotic´, shorttobe first released The FilmwasNestašn by Zagreb Back toYugoslavia andtoanimation, heinjectedhis thissuccessreached VladoKristl (Zagreb, news of The In 1957,Vatroslav Mimica(Omiš, 1923) joined theani- Samac (Alone, 1958)wasawarded aprestigious prize

69 Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 14:18 02 Oct 2021; For: 9781315720753, chapter3, 10.1201/9781315720753-3 Italy, 1971. fof Don’t but Sleep), never couldmatch theartisticquality theYoungschlafen nicht!Traitors Films (The German of Plenty) and,in1982,withVerräter desjungenDeutschen Films Landof Utopen (Utopia)andDasLanddesÜberflusses(The brieflytoanimation in1967,withDieKristl returned Letter, 1965),inwhich hemadeactingappearances. ture films, Dam,1965)and Der Brief(The DerDamm(The where hefilmedseveral live-action shortsandtwo fea- put himintrouble. Annoyed, hemoved toGermany, 1962), asatirical, live-action shortaimedat Tito, which there hemadeGeneral iresni rˇlovek General-in-Chief, (The oe n eaeoeo themostimportantYugoslavlove, andbecameone of to live-action cinema, his first animation to devote himself 1963, based on apoem by Jure In 1963,he left Kastelan). kronika (Everyday Chronicle, 1962) and tor sevratio kuc´i InspectorComesHome, (The Mala 1959), style. exhibited cleverly novelties incorporated of theAmericanandCanadianproductions, but still best of livadi (IntheMeadow, 1957)were partiallyindebtedtothe Kostanjšek. HisPremijera (OpeningNight,1957),andNa be mentionedwithouthisinnovative designerVjekoslav thedistinguisheddirectors, andhisname can’t of first vice versa. Nikola Kostelac (Zagreb, 1920–99) was the forbecome artistsordesigners theircolleagues, and for newprojects wascommonpractice. Directors would and thoughts. shared experiences, despitedifferent artisticpersonalities, school’s trademark –acommoninspiration generated by existence. becamethe This of ing aboutthehorrors butgrew Zagreb’s intolong,gradually films painfulmoan- and Evil.Filmsprovoking liberating laughterstillexisted, characters, but rather withanguish,incommunicability caricatural storiesof slav artistsnolongerdealtwithbrief (such ascollagesandassemblages) anditssubjects. Yugo- towards avant-garde andpictorialtechniques graphic limitedanimation, withitsmarked tendency its styleof SchoolKristl. Duringthisera,theZagreb legitimized is dominated by such authoritiesasVukotic´, Mimicaand divided intotwo from periods. first, 1957to1964, The 70 34 33 32 Midhat Ajanovic´ kindlyprovided somethoughtsaboutDušanVukotic´. SeeMore AboutIt 2. this film,seeMore AboutIt 1. For study adeep of ‘Ranko Munitic´ onYugoslavia’, in Orio Caldiron and Turi Fedele (eds.),

In 1962,Kristlmoved toViba FilminLjubljana and After hisdebut film,Alone(1958),Mimicamade Inspek- At Zagreb, exchanging newteams roles andforming asbeing School Zagreb isusuallythoughtof The Don Quixote. Chapter 3:Yugosla 32 via: oftheZagrebvia: The FirstStage School Tifusari (Typhus, sandar Petrovic´ andDušanMakavejev. thenew generation, togetherwithAlek- of filmmakers Figure 3.8 won himanOscar. CriticRankoMunitic´ wrote: animation, of thefinestinhistory work andoneof Moon) in1959.Surogat (Substitute, 1961),hisbest-known Sub-Machine Gun,1959)andKrava namjesecu (Cow onthe 1998)filmedKoncert zamašinsku(Concertofor pušku July Dušan Vukotic´ integrity. personal to thefasttechnological rhythm at thecostof ourtimes, which forces mantoadapt tragic conflictof the His world ischaracterized by akeenawareness of colourinitsentirety.ica usestheexpressive value of civilization. Mim- modern man caughtintheweb of rigidity isapoeticmetaphorfor thedesperation of or mobileasVukotic´’s caricatures, but theirexternal absurdity, Mimica/Marks’s figures are notasnatural of concept thecontemporary symbolic synthesisof collage into an expressivetransformed solution. As a maze-like fabric. articulate subordinating in depth, figures to a broken, colourwhich parallelstrata of design, spaceconsistsof tral planesorsurfacesandbare drawings. Inhisscene favoured rich structures andcomplex over graphic neu- animation. He paid attention tothepictorial aspectsof surface. Asfor Mimica,he highly decorative of concept also usedcolourastheelementwhich bestdefinedhis awhitearabesques against neutralbackground. He Vukotic´ chose simple caricatural drawings moving like Il film d’animazione d’Europa, Festival catalogue, Abano Terme, hswyo usingmaterial, already in1959, wayThis of

Dušan Vukotic´, Sur 34 33 (Bilec´a, 1927–Zagreb, 8 7February ogat, 1961. Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 14:18 02 Oct 2021; For: 9781315720753, chapter3, 10.1201/9781315720753-3 live-action films. hiscareer to Hedevoted Lingurski. therest of that of rather than Trnka, thus taking a direction opposite to puppets, Topaldjikov KarelZeman followed the leadof of the1950sand1960s. Asananimator other filmsof LittlePainter School (1954)andseveralNursery (1953),The inthe Event director of April 1994) 21 March 1909–Sofia, Topaldjikov (Constantinople[now Istanbul], Turkey, 26 animated colour film(1951).Hewasjoined by Stefan Terrible Bomb(1951)anddirecting MasterManol,thefirst worked withanimated puppets, makinghisdebut withThe World also RobotUprising,1960).DimoLingurski , 1956;The pet animator, Manfrom theOther startinginthe1950s(The Aronov wasapup- (17April 1921–Pleven, 17April 1987) theForest. Aron Republic of andLamb(1950)The Wolf tory. Todorov-Zarava directed HeSuffers inHisMind(1949), experience, films the first proved quite unsatisfac - lack of scarce meansand 1948but, becauseof started inMay state-run industry. cinematographic studiowas The authorities toopenananimation sectionwithinthenew phenakistoscope, convinced the asortof inventor of (1946). LittleThief and The they produced ASick Person (apoliticalcaricature, 1946) 1972), 1925–Sofia,31 March Republic, 10 September Alexander Denkov, arenowned illustrator (Prague, Czech two shortexperimental films. of Undertheleadership reconstruction, several joinedforces painters andmade films,against insects). made in1931,taughtaboutthe fight his best involved with advertising and education (one of anartist jiev (Ruse,April 1980), 5 1January 1906–Sofia, sporadicworks by Vassiltion consistedonlyof Bakard- anima- Bulgarian In the1920sand1930s, thewhole of Bulgaria traditional style, withoutmuch fantasy. In1956, witha then Popescu-Gopo and hiscolleagueshadfollowed a number, from the one film in 1951 to ten in 1956. Until Studio. country’s The productions increased in gradually Beeandthe Pigeon),producedbelul (The by Bucharest - debuted in1951withAlbinasiporum 3 December 1989), later inthe1950s. live-action cinema.True professional animation began communistThe regime promoted first state-funded Romania Dimitar Todorov-Zarava (Sumen,21September 1901) World renewal and WarAt theendof II,inthewakeof Ion Popescu-Gopo (Bucharest, 30 April 1923–Bucharest, h atepnigwrdo animation. the fastexpanding world of standardization, even infootage –which was greatly feltin right time, summarizinganeed–thedetachment from that firmed Popescu-Gopo’s revolution hadcome at the fixed theme for one-minute maximum films. This con- In 1967,theMontreal Expoheldacompetitionwith wascertainlyprolific. place for epigram cinematographic cheating andexploitation. of ever it does convey Popescu-Gopo’s point on the subjects The barethis film).apologueis vaguely moralistic,how- in 1956(althoughhisleadingcharacter didnotappearin marked tothestylePopescu-Gopo areturn haddisplayed what absurd tastehedisplayed inhisearly works. Kisses expected, nolonger supportingthesubversive andsome- expedients. or hishumourcameoutasgratuitous Then emerged whenever plottorely heneglected exclusively on his variations. communications asthemesonwhich todevelop of history theartsand human kind,thebirthof of the history essayist, he used work on the naked little man. A clever between 1956 and 1962,when hefilmedthe four-part als (pins, hair).Popescu-Gopo’s bestperiodwasthespan feature filmsas well as experiments with various materi - a quitepaleproduction which includedsomelive-action Pills, followed by Kisses(1969)andHourglass (1972),andby Film Festival of 1966. teen seconds)which openedtheevenings at theMamaia lightning-like animated sketches (oftennolongerthanfif- of tled hisoffering‘pill-film’and presented itinaseries synthesis which favoured minimal-lengthfilms. Heenti- expressive on languageproblems, developing of atheory gnomic films. Meanwhile, Popescu-Gopo concentrated and and abroad. 7arte(Seven Arts, (1960) Homo Sapiens 1958), usual drawings, itwaswell received bothinRomania and characterized by compacteditingandby drier-than- discovers anewlife. film,cleverly A philosophical fanciful untilhereaches history Spaceand evolutionary stagesof little man,withanoblong head,who goesthrough allthe (Short History, protagonist 1956).The isaprimitive naked heritage anddirected aninnovative short,Scurtaistorie his ‘classical’ sudden change, Popescu-Gopo got rid of a osdrduwrh fany attention. But it wassufficiently was considered unworthy of DonQuixoteirritatedeverybodyAt first, withitsunintelligibilityand oec-oospooa fmakinganimation the Popescu-Gopo’s proposal of Popescu-Gopo’s somewhat professorial, pedantictone In 1967,Popescu-Gopo of released asecondanthology (al,Hlo nasre fsimilarcomic, Allo, allo(Hallo, Hallo)inaseriesof More About It Chapter 3:More AboutIt

71 Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 14:18 02 Oct 2021; For: 9781315720753, chapter3, 10.1201/9781315720753-3 Here are of it: thelasttwo paragraphs tl), theAnimatedUnderstanding FilmDonQuixoteby VladimirKris- Don KihotVladimiraKristla’(AnAttemptat Reading and hat Ajanovic´’s ‘Pokušaj eˇitanja i razumijevanja animiranog filma imposing andpowerful that younger criticsre-evaluated it.Mid- 72 see oecmrse;tetase fthemoleculefrom one is even more compressed; thetransfer of 16 pictures shot in a second. In animation the time instead of twenty-four pictures inasecond theprojection of because of muteThe burlesques at one time were called‘accelerated films’ onds inareal lifeandonthe screen are experienced differently. timehasbeen changed; twenty sec- of tures theconcept history themoving pic- time. Inover onehundred years of treatment of has almostfaded away. that dividesphysical andsemantic,perception andrecognition, tion by themselves intothosewho onlyreceive boundary it.The from- thosewhosentations. peopleturn choose informa Modern andrepre- of information someoneelse’s choice the influenceof theworld isconstantlyexposed to us –henceourexperience of ones tofocus on.Inthemediasomeoneelsemadeaselectionfor we seeonlydetails;consciouslyorunconsciouslywe choose the Ineveryday, constanttransformation. tion of natural perception want tohear;thanksthemediaourperception isinthecondi- our view, media potentiate ourhearingbut alsoselectwhat we mediainourlives. Mediaprolong but alsodirect the presence of of of the time because find ourselves in the fictitious world most music clips, digitalized pictures, We Hollywood andtheInternet. bytion formed accumulated andpictures, information films, TV, ourpercep- withsensesareences gained onlyonecomponentof faculties. received from thefilmaccording toour experiences, beliefsand ic, artificial(animated) ordigitalized. We elaborate information ence orknowledge about it. order torecognize something we oughttohave previous experi - DonQuixoteisrelated totherulethat says: in total experience of

nte motn opnn fthefilmperception isthe Another important component of Today we cantalkaboutnewperception where ourexperi- That ruleappliestoallfilms, whether they- are photograph theperception and important elementconcerning first The ol ac tcoeya ti were abuilding orapainting. could watch itcloselyas itif videoor DVDs, when we of the filminourhomes, in forms involved withit,andthat becamepossible withthearrivalof film the spectator inthefuture. idealperception of The kind of themedia. the influenceof histime, isexposed to thespace;spectator who, mostof of perception film andanimation, thebasicsof history, of theory who person knowsimaginary very well conventions, trends, art into thefuture. Kristliscallinguponthe‘ideal’spectator, the and artalways lives inthefuture,Perception/ trueworkThe of Hrvatski FilmskiLjetopis,No. 40, 2004,isespeciallyremarkable.Hrvatski Chapter 3:More AboutIt In theagewhen mediawere comingtolife, hefindsthat Don Quixoteis, above all,exactly that; theinstinctive glance Don Quixoteistheoneinwhich thespectator isinteractively

1 Mousing concept) oritwillbefoundedMousing concept) onalready concludedand fectly synchronized soundillustration (so-calledDisney Mickey per of in animated films willappearmainlyasorinthe form time. For soundpicture, thesound decades, afterthediscovery of animation, willnotbeable tousethesoundpotentialfor along teach ustoheardifferently. Butfilmin general,andespecially film picture willteach ustoseedifferently andthefilmsound will Film, published in 1930, Béla Balázs prophetically wrote that the inscription ‘acquadestilata’. thebottlewith the when heinjectsintothe‘head’contentof aneye oranear loudspeakerinsteadof he usesagramophone film world, andthat is evident, for example, inthescene where is fittedintothegeneralmechanistic andgeometricallyshaped ontopandwiththehat hairs on.He(or‘it’) with a coupleof egg with abeard andahat, andhiscompanionSancho Panza asan making thingsalive. DonQuixote isrepresented asawater pipe things, its‘life’andmostprobably animated thefirst filmisabout fetishismof industrialrevolution andisaresult of the timeof things. in Animation isaphenomenonborn metrical sketch of geo- human anatomic features but of are represented intheform inner sight. thepicturethe nakedbody, itself, its essenceandconstructionof conscious experiences, while animation anddrawing represent and beings. photography The functionsasasynonym for our ofthings of thesurface the filmic reality itfigures asanimprint thephotography isitssuperficiality–inthecontext of teristic of which we seeawindmillandsunflower. A fundamental charac- offered (un)realityphotographically andinanobjective shotin DonQuixote,where hesees for example inonesubjective shotof sightsrepresent real athirdThe photographic spaceinthefilm, thescreen. playing thehorizon asavertical lineinthemiddle of Kristl obtainssuch effects by spinningthe whole picture or by dis- screen becomesthestandinglinewhere thecharacters move. the asuddentheupperlineof ing thesceneupsidedown: allof continuous instabilityby rotat- space; hecreates thefeelingof he, likeSisyphus, ispushingituphill. Kristl constantly relativizes ral elementssuch asthestonethat fallsonDonQuixote where whileand airplanes, thesecondoneispracticallyvoid, withnatu- is overloaded with cars, traffic signs, whistles, firemen, cannons space urbanindicators. first The thelackof ment, becauseof city andinsomethingthat couldbedefinedasnatural environ - DonQuixoteare settledintwo sets, ina The this film.events of the film. makingof and theonebeingdeveloped of inthecourse DonQuixote isoriginated two eras, theoneinwhich theideaof thefilmsumsup metaphoricaldimensionof timeof dusk. The describes events inthefilm,spreads oneentire day, from dawn to film the animation duration. duration anditsuninterrupted The of of human specieshasalready beenshown inthecompressed time the abouttheduration orthestory of course in uninterrupted to anotherstate, thecompletee The fifth importantelementisthesound.InhisDerGeistdes The fourthThe element is inthecharacters that don’t possessany perception of Set designisthenext importantelementof Don Quixoteistenminutes, but its‘real’ time, theonethat xistence of a single individual asingle xistence of - Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 14:18 02 Oct 2021; For: 9781315720753, chapter3, 10.1201/9781315720753-3 itoiyadb aallsetu ntebcgon fspace virtuosity andby parallelspectrum inthebackground of hisdrawing, by fluctuating signs, tiveby rhythmic topography of painting’ (as P. Adams Sitney called it) is thus realized by intui- realized onlyinanimation: ‘afilmicdream aboutcontemporary that process. Kristl’s idiosyncratic drawing isfully segments of time, the putting together pieces of transformation, process of signs, mosaicinthe that of couldbedescribedas arrangement and subconscious. our experienceaswell andmemory astochallenge ourinstincts Itsaimistoinvokeabstract form. theimagesthat derive from space andtimedensity, Kristl composes thedramadynamics in subliminal hintsandmetadiegeticinsertsby reduction of afilmpicture, ture,by hardly noticed by activating aframeof betweentime andspacegap theframes. Byzooming thepic- our consciencetofillinthe is leaning on thecharacteristic of Since two pictures very rarely coincide, itisclearthat Kristl are takingplaceintwo separatedpictures that differintexture. Don Quixotewe are practicallywatching two films whose actions it’s avery complex editingthat we are talkingabouthere. In editingcontinuity.frames according But tothesimplestrulesof movement andconnectingof cartoons withlineardirections of thechase DonQuixotelookslikeastandard process of ing of enemy. city’s paranoidworld anditssquared inhabitantsthat actashis Quixote –hisindividualityanddiversity isthusopposedwiththe Don sound,Kristlunderlines error’incongruent of the‘factory thepaper.that doesn’t Byusing at allresemble thesoundof ‘metal’sound ing through abookisfollowed by somekindof pilot.Glanc- as awoman withamoustache andasanairplane at Dulcinea depicted the same time of book with photographs moment by DonQuixote’s encouragementwhere hereads the moment by thetubethat ‘breaks’ tobefollowed inthesecond and indecisionbefore thecrucialbattle isrepresented inthefirst by sounds. hisweakness incongruent For example, themoment of automobiles. Ontheotherhand,DonQuixoteismainly‘sounded’ in additionwithconstantexplosions, whistles andscreeching of march, amilitary inthefilmisakindof onlymusicalThe motif and aconstantwarsituation, chaos andgeneralfrenzy reign. sonalized geometricsignsthat huminthe‘city’where paranoia per of nized sounds, while illustrating mainlycongruous swarms media–couldberealized. of the newerainhistory Cannon andRootyToot Toot (1951)by Hubley, which have marked –such asGeraldanimation McBoingBoing(1951)by masterpieces thefilmpicture, the sound of incongruent to thepossibilityof sounds. andincongruent Due sound canbedividedincongruent ture andtone. animatorswilldiscover These that inanimation activating theinterrelation between pic- studied theproblem of where someimportantanimators likeAvery, CannonandHubley the process initiated in WB Studio and followed by UPA later on, as amere music visualization. DonQuixoteisaEuropean version of musicindependent where forms, animated filmpicture functions Directly connectedwitheditingistheanimation method next,The sixthelementisediting.glance, Atafirst theedit- mecha - DonQuixoteisacollageof soundbackground of The - a similarsubject. Twelve represent photographs large-format animation. of response given onimportantphilosophical query intheform side, andtheindividualbeingon theother. It’s abouttheartist’s but ittreats aman’s lifecontradictions as asocialbeingonone (ormaybe itis,not aboutacertainideology but onlymarginally), merely film is asareactioncertainpoliticalsystem.This against Nevertheless, this film it would to interpret be banal indeed to try difference between people. were massive meetingsandcollectivization that ofteneroded the to town, followed by whose visible newideology manifestations emigration from villages that wasaffected by the chaotic wave of Quixote, sincehebelongedtoamiddleclassinanenvironment time inwhich we read itandanalyze it. andthe timeinwhich thefilmwasborn work, comparisonsof stances, author’s known ‘eccentricity’aswell asmyths abouthis importance inthefilmDonKihot:historicalandculturalcircum- release, thefollowing paratext undoubtedlygain interpretations avant-garde films. held inthecircles of Forty-five afterits years filmindisputes extreme importance, of andinthe history is of text examples in the literature – in Joyce’s, where Ulysses the title readingitand experiencingit. We havedefine ourway of para- artand that makepossible acommunication withthework of thework) influencesconventions tations andgeneralreceptionof thework, author’s interviews,- criticinterpre paratext (thetitleof Genette, considerthat notonlythetext but alsotheso-called have philosophers, already such asGérard seen.Somemodern an art work, as we of view and interpretations er new points of some previous knowledge. and consequentlyitisimpossible tocommunicate with itwithout thework inquestion Don Quixoteisaboutsymbolicmeaningof koža project not a film based on the book, unlike his former windmills and that istheonly known factaboutthat work. Itis and theirplotsare circulating inthemedia,DonQuixote fights thewindmill.Inepoch where booksare notbeingread of the film where we seeboththetitleDonQuixoteanddrawing but its medium reduction, which frame of in the first is suggested is inthepicture’. What isbetween each picture ismuch more importantthanwhat movements that aredrawings drawn. that move; but theartof 1967):‘Animation during theMontreal Expoof isnottheartof animation given McLaren by (written on a wall Norman tion of vowels. Or, asitisformulated inafamousandoftenquoteddefini- the language that in their interrelation create like consonants of and when mutually connectedby animation technique they figure themovement) asatotality(andnotpartof phase appears completeeditingcomplex. Each it represents thefinesttexture of thefilm: totaleditingof prospective. Animation becomespartof Vibeke Tanberg’s Faces exhibition The , heldin1998,treats We supposethat hisanticommunist attitude derives from that. We couldeasilyimaginethat KristlcouldfeeljustlikeDon Along withnewexperiencescometogeth- andunderstandings the film is not a real text theme An interpretation/of The , where theactionstrictlyfollows writtenby thestory Balzac. Chapter 3:More AboutIt Šagrenska Šagrenska

73 Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 14:18 02 Oct 2021; For: 9781315720753, chapter3, 10.1201/9781315720753-3 that itwilloutlive many arecent work of art. andagain. contain secrets tothemagain that induceustoreturn art lastaslongwethemcompletely, understand aslongthey and eventually historicalvalue. gains Filmsandother works of artwork timeitinevitably losesthecharacteristic of passing of also tentimesmore, let’s say aboutseven hundred years. With the seventy, lessthandouble, artcouldpersist but thenthework of ahuman’s lifeis, let’s say, years of theaverage number of old. If rotten water pipe. ism andhumanismwillbeappraisedasmuch asadiscarded, announced aself-cantered, cynicalworld inwhich individual- globalization.Kristl could putitthisway, modern apicture of culturaldifferences between people; itis, we violent erasingof subjectivity,and dehumanized world characterized by lossof acentury ago. ested Kristlalmosthalf among numerous others, illustrate thesameproblems that inter andmediaterror.norms ‘idiot’, imprisonedinourbody andconscience, chained by society theinner vonLars Trier, aliberation of isbasedupontheideaof individuality. subject isbeingsuffocated by processes that annihilate allits how unstable postmodernist where sheexperienced herself duringhermoveexhibition wasborn toabigcity(Berlin), them.According totheartist’s words, theideafor the each of possibly closecousins;we thesex cannoteven of determine represents orseveral one person photograph different persons, uncertainty. whether the There isnopossibilitytodetermine the photosare manipulated, and that enhancesourfeelingof caption says that we are lookingat acomputerimageandthat ness, while theirposesvaryfrom enfacetoprofile. Each photo slightly differinfaceshapes, noses, eye colours, eyebrow thick- identical background. Upper elements are constant, but they with identicalgrey the shirtonandinidenticalposeagainst twelve intheirmiddlethirties, persons withidenticalshorthair, 74 tion, rhythmically structured movement andgeometrically (id.,1957),whichJimmy wascharacterized by reduced anima- PlayfulRobot, Vukotic´ The duction of work began on Cowboy PlayfulNestašni Robot (The Robot, 1956). Already during pro- workHis first at Filmwas thesoon-to-become-famous Zagreb thelocalanimation. He alsoparticipated inthe founding of Vukotic´ publishing began caricatures andhumorous cartoons. onestate –Yugoslavia.part of Assoonashearrived inZagreb, the time, thelate 1950s, Montenegro andCroatia were both in Croatia tostudy architecture. wasnotunusual, This sinceat Dušan Vukotic´ wasayoung who cametoZagreb Montenegrin

There isnodoubtthat DonQuixotewilllastfor alongtimeand itisgood,andeverything that lives isgrowing Art isalive if But farfrom everything hasbeensaidaboutthis film. Don Quixoteisawork that describes(pictures) amechanized artists, importantcontemporary twoThe citedexamples of (Idiots, 1998),directed by filmIdioterne The Danishfilmmaker Chapter 3:More AboutIt More About It

2 - then acquires aneven andmore bigger powerful instrumentand instrumentandstarts playingbigger louderthanthe first, who piccolo andstartstoplay. otherbecomesjealousandgetsa The thembuyscall round alittle andhelpeach other, untiloneof tocutofftherain above scissors theother.They use apairof the neighbours defamiliarization scene in which we see one of quite well.isillustrated This amongotherthingsby asuccessful see two who neighbours live in the same house and get along way criticized bothsidesintheColdWar. Asthefilmopens, we film sal satire, clearly McLaren’s influenced by Norman well-known towards theWesternly turned Hemisphere, Piccolowasauniver Academy Award for animation. Oberhausen, Annecy, Mamaia, etc.,andeven won Europe’s first tion at several importantfestivals such asCannes, Berlin, London, atten- as anadjective, Ersatz, 1961),heattracted agreat dealof films, artistssuch asKlee, Withern andChagall. Kandinsky thosetwo mod- a rhythmically reduced animation undertheinfluenceof potential as acartoonistand combine hisstylized with imagery Studios, NewYork: Tantivy The Press, 1972,p. 56). theWorld’s MajorCartoon Oneof totheFilmsof A Guide Zagreb: Vukotic’s satires’‘the weakest of (Ronald Holloway, ZIsfor horror movies which BritishcriticRonald Holloway judged breakthrough –andVeliki Great strah (The Fear), aparody of and with which Vukotic´ achieved his definitive international to for Sub-Machine movie Gun)–dealingwiththegangster point in Hollywood genres: Koncert za mašinsku pušku (Concer two furtherparodies aimedat capitalismwiththeirstarting thesametitle, and Chekhov’s of shortstory adaptation of Vukotic´ madethree Avenger), films, (The Osvetnik ananimated ism onAmericanculture Americanization. andglobal In1958 commercial- genres, andsatirized boththedevastating of grip popularculture, particularly Americanfilm the trivialitiesof filmsinwhich Vukotic´ inaseriesof and thefirst parodied thePrairie, 1949), parodypuppet western Arieprérie(Songof content,thefilmwasadirect answer toJirˇí of terms Trnka’s tions, andshows already for inthisfilmhisaffection parody. In identifiable motifsandwell-known representational conven- that you cannot caricature the unknown, so he employs easily coal is always black and so on. He also knows white, a lump of about nuance andambiguity–inacartoonsnow isalways caricature isnot thefactthat theartof he isfullyaware of in acartoonworld. Hiscaricature isclearandpronounced; ual elements, which strikesusasextremely even contradictory defamiliarization, where heeffectively combinesdisparate vis- Vukotic´Besides pictorial metamorphosis, often uses a kind of delivered solelythrough pantomime, andmusic. soundeffects was eliminated, communication between thecharacters being thecurrenttrends art.Dialoguereflected incontemporary two-dimensional symbols, which together with the background figures. characters inthefilmwereformed The constructedas Unlike hisparodies, inwhich hisall-embracinggaze wasmain- In hisfollowing two films, Vukotic´ would fully realize his Neighbours raceandinthat (1952),which wasaboutthearms Piccolo (id.,1959)andSurogat (Substitute, but oftentranslated - - Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 14:18 02 Oct 2021; For: 9781315720753, chapter3, 10.1201/9781315720753-3 planted from one place in the indeterminate spacetoanother planted from oneplaceintheindeterminate adistinctive animated jump-cutwhere thefigures are trans- of device which dominates Ersatz isareduced movement intheform eventually treads on a nail and bursts. An effective experimental film’s outtobeaballoonpuppet, when he main character turns and objectsare inflated balloons which intheend.Evenburst the whose fundamentalcharacteristic isreplaceability. Allcharacters inthefilmasaconsumablebe consumed.Manisdepicted being existencehasbecometoconsumeand of ficial, theonlypurpose money.love of Everything we seearound andarti- usisillusory society andthegeneralemptinessbrought aboutby humanity’s the Croats, thetwo largest Yugoslavian peoples. via inthe1990s, thetworepresenting neighbours theSerbsand thewarwhich splitYugoslaPiccolo canbeseenasemblematic- of asasymbolfor nationalism.piccolo beinterpreted Inthisway race,for andinhindsightitisalmostinevitable thearms that the instrumentsactassymbols piccolosandtheotherbigger The family becomesinvolved, andintheendhousecollapses. so on.Sobeginsabrutalwarinwhich each neighbour’s whole ) is a satire of life in the modern consumer lifeinthemodern Substitute (orErsatz) isasatire of capitalism. emotion andtheidealizingmyths created by thedemandsof mankind’s insignificancebefore death, thevulgarizationof hemisphere.to scrutinize itswestern Hepointedoutmodern ideological foundations, but hewasconsiderably more inclined theoutsideworld chimed absolutelywithhissociety’s view of manifold possibilitiesfor self-expression, apoliticaltool.His Yugoslavia, 1972). and Margaret ( Bulgakov’s Master novel The created for thefilmadaptation of Gratia Artis(id.,titleinLatin, 1970),andthespecialeffectshe among others, thefilmsOpera Cordis (id.,titleinLatin, 1968),Ars live-action feature films. brieflytoanimation with, He returned attention, Vukotic´international to decidedtodevote himself mated children’s drawings andlive actionandhislasttoattract without in-between frames. pointBandconsequentlycompletely travelling from pointA to without moving. They simplyappearinanewpositionwithout For Vukotic´ animation became, with besidesanartform After makingIgra Il Maestro, Aleksandar Petrovic´, e Margherita Italy and (h ae 92,acmiaino ani- Game, (The 1962),acombination of Chapter 3:More AboutIt