Golden Fern
Country
CzechoslovakiaCopyright
1963Production year
1962—1963Premiere
22 November 1963Runtime
104 minDirector
Jiří WeissCategory
filmGenre
fairytaleTypology
featuretheatrical distributionlongOriginal title
Zlaté kapradíCzech title
Zlaté kapradíEnglish title
Golden FernSynopsis
On a Midsummer night, the young shepherd Jura succeeds in tearing a spray of magical golden fern in a forest. He defends himself from birds of prey and return to his safe chalet. A beautiful fairy comes for the fern. Jura drags her to the chalet, asks for a kiss and the two end up in a passionate embrace. Dryad [Lesanka], as Jura begins to call her, becomes the shepherd's wife. She manages to save a little seed, which fell out of the fern's blossom. A few days later, the couple visits a village dance, and while the nimble-footed fairy is still fresh after the brisk dance, the swaggering shepherd, scoffed-at by the villagers, falls to the floor with exhaustion. The conceited Jura gets drunk out of spite and, with his friends, falls victim to a military officer from a press-gang. Dryad still manages to give him a shirt into which she has sewn up the magical seed. The seed protects Jura's life in battles, making him invulnerable. Jura is promoted when he brings back a banner he seized from the Turkish camp. Captain Jura is then noticed by the conceited and beautiful daughter of the general. She sets several tasks to Jura and becomes his lover. Because of her, Jura even burns his tow-cloth shirt, thus losing both the magic protection and Dryad's love. Disguised as a Turk, the shepherd then goes to the enemy camp to steal a precious nightingale he had promised the general's daughter. Upon his return, he is considered a deserter and sentenced to be flogged to death. His friends eventually save his life. Jura returns home, but only in vain tries to find his fairy in his chalet and in the woods.
Photos
Cast
Vít Olmer
Voice by Jan Tříska
ovčák Jura
Dana Smutná
generálova dcera
Karla Chadimová
Voice by Alena Kreuzmannová
víla Lesanka
Radoslav Brzobohatý
Matěj
Zdeněk Braunschläger
Martin
František Smolík
generál
Čestmír Řanda
obršt
Otomar Krejča
vezír
Jaroslav Vojta
hospodář
Josef Bek
kaprál
Jindřich Narenta
velitel vezírových stájí
Eugen Jegorov
pištec
Lubomír Bryg
eunuch
Alena Bradáčová
Rozárka
Jorga Kotrbová
Barborka
Josef Hlinomaz
hospodský
Bohumil Švarc
major
Lola Skrbková
Voice by Světla Amortová
cikánka
Ivo Němeček
verbíř
Miroslav Svoboda
vezírův pobočník
Jiří Bělohoubek
stráž
Alex Jandouš
stráž
Milan Kindl
krčmář
Marie Waltrová
Martinova matka
Aleš Bílek
hudebník
Jaroslav Boťa
hudebník
František Brož
hudebník
Karel Duba
hudebník
F. Hurtík
hudebník
Čestmír Preclík
hudebník
Karel Koš
hudebník
R. Líčeník
bubeník
Jaroslav Imramovský
bubeník
J. Skružný
bubeník
Zdeněk Šiška
bubeník
B. Pavlík
bankéř
M. Heyduková
huriska
D. Reichová
huriska
Helena Růžičková
huriska
A. Šťastná
huriska
Raoul Schránil
důstojník
Zdeněk Skalický
turecký důstojník
Evžen Růžek
odsouzenec
František Suk
voják
J. Neumanová
odaliska
Anselma Teisingerová
dcera hostinského
Dagmar Zikánová
markytánka
Crew and creators
Director
Second Unit Director
Assistant Director
Based on
Jan Drda (Zlaté kapradí – pohádka ze sbírky České pohádky)
Screenplay
Jiří Weiss, Otomar Krejča (dialogy), Jiří Brdečka (spolupráce na scénáři)
Director of Photography
Camera Operator
Production Designer
Assistent Production Designer
Set Designer
Jiří Haller, Libor Speychal, Václav Štědronský, František Zajíček
Costume Designer
Costumes
Make-Up Artist
Film Editor
Assistant Film Editor
Sound Designer
Production Manager
Unit Production Manager
Consultant
PhDr. Václav M. Škorpil, Jan Vaníček
Cooperation
Jiřina Brandejsová (klapka), Drahoslav Kapička (fotograf), Jiří Všetečka (fotograf)
Music
Music Composed by
Music Performed by
FISYO (Music Conducted by František Belfín)
Choreographer
František Halmazňa
Danced by
Vysokoškolský umělecký soubor, Balet Národního divadla Praha
Songs
Voják, voják
Singer sbor
Production info
Original Title
Zlaté kapradí
Czech Title
Zlaté kapradí
English Title
Golden Fern
Category
film
Typology
featuretheatrical distribution
Genre
fairytale
Origin country
Czechoslovakia
Copyright
1963
Production Year
1962—1963
Production specifications
literary Screenplay approved 6 December 1961
technical Screenplay approved 22 June 1962
start of filming 16 August 1962
end of filming 31 May 1963
projection approval 25 July 1963
withdrawal from distribution 1 September 1974
Premiere
premiere 22 November 1963 /unsuitable for youths/ (celostátní)
premiere 29 November 1963 /unsuitable for youths/ (kina Alfa /3 týdny/, Veletrhy /1 týden od 13. 12./ a Svornost /1 týden od 20. 12./, Praha)
Production
Copyright Holders
Studio
Distribution
Creative Group
Tvůrčí skupina Švabík – Procházka, Jan Procházka (vedoucí dramaturg tvůrčí skupiny), Erich Švabík (vedoucí výroby tvůrčí skupiny)
Technical info
Duration typology
feature film
Duration in minutes
104 min
Original length in metres
2 956 meters
Distribution carrier
16mm, 35mm
Aspect ratio
1:1,66, 1:2,35
Colour
black & white
Sound
sound
Sound system/format
mono
Versions
Czech
Dialogue languages
Czech
Subtitles languages
without subtitles
Opening/End credits languages
Czech
