Since 1992 there has been a film and TV studio in Ostrava, whose symbol has become two letters associating round spectacles. A person who founded the studio and also backs its working is a very creative man, Vladimír Mráz.
Thank to him and a lot of other skillful people a full-length cartoon, called Báječná show, cheered up lots of children´s faces at the beginning of the year. I was a bit curious and I asked Vladimír Mráz: The rate of your life determined especially by your work doesn´t allow you to feel bored. How are you? I am great ...... You look pale, aren´t you ill? Yeah, I´m geetting it, but it´s probably only laziness....it´s the only thing I´ve been missing. Let´s talk about our topic. Where does the idea to make a full-length cartoon come from? The first impulse came from the Czech TV producer Marča Arichteva, who wanted to shoot La Fontaine´s fables. Originally it should have been a played fairy-tale, but we hadn´t managed to leave the cliché so we tried a different technology. And because QQ is an expert in plasticine puppet with special effects (including cartoons) and we offered acceptable conditions for production so it started. Why fables? Probably we couldn´t stand the plotless cartoons any more, where someone runs to and fro all the time and nobody knows why. On the other han I have to confess we minimized the striking moral of the fables with songs, so we hope these are still fables... Well, it´s not only about fables and La Fontaine. What is Báječná show about then? It´s about pride in various forms, about contemporary profligacy,when the most of us know, what is wrong but there is still something inside that tempts us to do it wrong. And we give in to it just right from egoism, ambitions and other ... desires. Animated fables are being screened during a huge TV show, which is presented by a platypus, the entertainer. His talkativeness and amusement at any rate define my opinion on the present TV culture. As a contrast there are moral fables with a sung mission, so our Báječná Show becomes a musical. What about the music? Who composed and sang all the songs? The music is perfect. It is all a work of Boris Urbánek and the songs were sung by excellent Czech artists such as Dan Bárta, Jiří Korn, Lucka Vondráčková, Peetr Janda, Vilém Čok, Heeii, Věra Špinarová and many others...We´ve had great experience with thesee professionals, they all were very creative and perfectly prepared. They helped the film a lot. How long did it take to make the film? It lasted three years, which is quite a good Czech record because it is highly complicated, 73 minutes long film. Well, how did the shooting run through? A group of professionals took part in the realization, including a designer Pepa Quis, animators Marta Kačorová, Karel Trlica, Ivoš Hejcman, Mirek Smejkal and also the beginners such as Gabka Pyszková, Honza Drozd or Marcela Polochová. We are all enriched by experience both with organizing the production and solving constructive problems from direction to animation. From technical scripts hanging all round the corridors, through the system of shots control to the process of sound completions.Alltogether we´ve been developing a few times quicker than usual. And we are already missing it. Do you want to prepare a continuation of Báječná show or are you getting ready for a different attack at the American megacompanies? We´ve already written a new theme called “Zamilovaný ptakopysk“, a story of a platypus that can´t find a partner of its species because they are on the list of endangered animals and kept strictly in secret by the company. So his only possibility is to burgle to the central databank (like Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible)....the police start chasing him and that´s it! We are just finishing the script and reaching out the potential business partners and due to the growing interest in plasticine puppet in the world it´s turning out well. What kind of technical equipment do you have at disposal in the studio?What animation is used in Báječná show? The technology is on quite a good level after the 10-year studio work. Let´s say that everything we make up can be also realized and the only obstacles are our ignorance or inexperience. The technology of animation is varied, there are fireworks banging and computer generated birds flying above the puppets, the projeector is alight, a camera is rotating aroun a modeled frog sitting on an ox and watching around, with the refraction in the object-lens...and other visual tricks. By the way is such cartoon rewarding? You must be certainly fighting financial problems! The biggest financial weight was borne by QQ, which is an incredible act because of the fact that the returnability of the film without screening in Czech cinemas is very limited. The Czech TV has got a monopoly for broadcasting in Czech republic, so the only way is selling porters on the Czech market and especially abroad, which is then our next task. We are preparing materials, visiting fairs and finding out conditions of sale. We hope to earn enough for another film. Are you trying to say thee film won´t even come to the cinemas? It would be a pity, wouldn´t it? Unfortunately our children won´t really see Báječná show even though we had pre-arranged a few partners incluing a grant from the Ministry of Culture but then came the floods and the money was used for more useful matters...Our coproduction partner Czech TV telecasted the film at Christmas 2002 and at the same time we presented audio CD, VHS and DVD. Is this caused by competition? How does the cartoon in independent studio succeed? It´s hard for a studio of animated production, especially in Northern Moravia, but we´re hardworking Moravians with modest ambitions, so we´re doing well. Good luck, then! Thanks for the interview. Denisa Jánská