Birds of Passage

Country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1961

Production year

1961

Premiere

10 November 1961

Runtime

78 min

Category

film

Genre

drama

Typology

featuretheatrical distributionlong

Original title

Tažní ptáci

Czech title

Tažní ptáci

English title

Birds of Passage

Working title

Údolí divů

Synopsis

After a short rest, tunnel man Vojta Balvín has begun to work on another construction site. He celebrates the reunion with his friends in the local pub. Vojta is an excellent and experienced worker, and thus, with a clear conscience and with the help of old Kožich, writes a letter about the exemplary work of his gang to his son Jenda. The next morning, however, the gang oversleeps and receives a public reprimand. The offended Vojta attacks the management of the construction site and his name appears on the so-called "notice board of dishonour". Jenda, inspired by the letter, writes an enthusiastic essay on his father and his work gang. However, his words are taken as empty boasting by his schoolmates. Jenda fights them for insulting his father. Without his mother's knowledge, he then sets off to meet his father at the construction site, arriving at a dramatic moment. His father has got lodged under a big boulder and his life is in danger. His co-workers manage to disengage him only with great effort - and grateful Vojta finds out that those who helped the most were the very people he considered his enemies. After he comes through, however, he still has to face the reproach of little Jenda, who found his father's name on the board of dishonour.

Cast

Jaroslav Rozsíval

tunelář Vojta Balvín

Martin Růžek

tunelář Ferda Kožich

Jan Skopeček

tunelářský pomocník Tonda Hladík

Oldřich Lukeš

střelmistr Vostrý

Jan Pohan

inženýr Hlavsa

Jiří Kostka

mistr Verbek

Eva Blažková

referentka Eva Horáková

Jaroslav Moučka

minér Štefan Pacalaj

Věra Tichánková

kantýnská Božka

Běla Jurdová

knihovnice Marie, Balvínova žena

Jiří Kříž

Jenda, syn Balvínových

Vladimír Klemens

kočí Forejt

Oldřich Velen

hostinský

Emil Rohan

vozíčkář

M. Svoboda

Viglaský

Jiří Štěpnička

žák Kučera

Josef Drnek

harmonikář

Oleg Reif

dělník

Emma Kubalová

stará paní

Ela Šilarová

Kučerová

Zdeněk Týle

tlustý pán

Crew and creators

Second Unit Director

Václav Berdych

Assistant Director

Jarmila Hurychová, Helena Rohanová

Screenstory

Jaroslav Zrotal

Shooting Script

Jaroslav Mach

Director of Photography

Jan Stallich

Second Unit Photography

Stanislav Kautský

Camera Operator

Jaroslav Kaiser

Production Designer

Milan Nejedlý

Assistent Production Designer

Jiří Hlupý

Set Designer

Ivo Černý, Vladimír Mácha

Costume Designer

Fernand Vácha

Film Editor

Antonín Zelenka

Assistant Film Editor

Eliška Švarcová

Sound Designer

Adolf Böhm

Production Manager

Ladislav Kalaš

Unit Production Manager

Adolf Široký, Josef Mathauser

Unit Production Manager

Luděk Marold

Consultant

František Hoření, Jan Colombini

Cooperation

Vlasta Gallerová (klapka)

Music

Music Composed by

Štěpán Lucký

Music Performed by

FISYO (Music Conducted by František Belfín)

Songs

Včera neděle byla

Song Composer Jiří Šlitr

Cestářská

Song Composer lidová starofrancouzská píseň

Slza

Singer Rudolf Pellar

Production info

Original Title

Tažní ptáci

Czech Title

Tažní ptáci

English Title

Birds of Passage

Working Title

Údolí divů

Category

film

Typology

featuretheatrical distribution

Genre

drama

Origin country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1961

Production Year

1961

Production specifications

literary Screenplay approved 5 October 1960
technical Screenplay approved 23 February 1961
start of filming 10 March 1961
end of filming 7 July 1961
projection approval 18 September 1961
withdrawal from distribution 1 April 1966

Premiere

premiere 10 November 1961 /suitable for youths/ (kina Metro /2 týdny/, Arbes /1 týden/ a Varšava /1 týden od 17. 11./, Praha)
premiere 10 November 1961 /suitable for youths/ (celostátní)

Copyright Holders

Národní filmový archiv

Studio

Hostivař

Creative Group

Tvůrčí skupina Šmída – Fikar, Ladislav Fikar (vedoucí dramaturg tvůrčí skupiny), Bohumil Šmída (vedoucí výroby tvůrčí skupiny)

Technical info

Duration typology

feature film

Duration in minutes

78 min

Original length in metres

2 229 meters

Distribution carrier

16mm, 35mm

Aspect ratio

1:1,37

Colour

black & white

Sound

sound

Sound system/format

mono

Versions

Czech

Dialogue languages

Czech

Subtitles languages

without subtitles

Opening/End credits languages

Czech