The Blue Gift from Heaven

Country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1983

Production year

1983

Premiere

1 February 1984

Runtime

78 min

Director

Ota Koval

Category

film

Genre

children, fairytale

Typology

featuretheatrical distributionlong

Original title

Modré z nebe

Czech title

Modré z nebe

English title

The Blue Gift from Heaven

Summary

Children’s film specialist Ota Koval adapted his modern fairytale Modré z nebe (1983) from a Hungarian writer Béla Balázs' children's story Az igazi égszinkék (Real Azure Blue). The main character is 10-year-old Tomáš Lorenc who finds that poverty is hampering his great passion – drawing. His mother lacks the money to pay for the blue colour he needs to finish a drawing for school. Fortunately, our needy hero can still rely on his ability to dream to compensate for life’s deprivations. In his imagination Tomáš uses a magic paint and, moreover, experiences a series of lively adventures with the beautiful Sylva, whom he eventually meets in real life. This poetic film uses the natural charm of non-professional child actor Martin Filip to good effect. The parts of the grown-ups were played by experienced actors including Josef Somr, Jiří Kodet and Jan Hartl.

Synopsis

The ten-year old TomᚠLorenc distributes the laundry washed by his mother to her customers on a bicycle even before his school classes. His mum also does laundry for the wealthy Hájek family whose daughter Markétka Tomᚠsecretly loves. Tomᚠdoes not have good marks at school, he only excells at drawing. He paints every free moment but he often does not have enough paint. Right now, he lacks blue, and he thus cannot complete a picture for the school. His mum does not have enough money to buy it. In the evening, the sad Tomᚠfalls asleep in an ancient chest in the attic and suddenly finds himself on a meadow full of blue flowers. He picks them and makes some blue paint out of them. Now, he can finish his picture, and the picture comes alive. Even his cat named Snow White turns blue when it drinks milk with several drops of the blue. Tomáš's life changes from this moment on. He experiences various things in his dreams with the equestrian Sylva, who is the spitting image of a girl from the Bellinzona circus poster. Together, they search for the cat which Tomáš's mother sold to the circus; they face the ringmaster who wants to use Tomáš's magic picture in his freakshow. When Tomᚠwakes up in the chest, his cat is snow white again. He also meets the real Sylva by the Bellinzona circus poster. He gives her a ride on his bicycle. They ride through the town and pass a dressed up Markétka, as well as the stingy Kamil who did not want to lend Tomᚠthe blue paint.

Cast

Martin Filip

Tomáš Lorenc

Lucie Novotná (2)

krasojezdkyně Sylva

Pamela Kneschková

Markéta Hájková

Karel Slabý

Kamil Dubský, Tomášův spolužák

Josef Somr

inspektor Saueressig/starosta/principál

Jiří Kodet

třídní učitel/velitel hasičů/krotitel

Jan Hartl

učitel kreslení/hasič/sadař/zřízenec cirkusu

Jiří Zahajský

opravář Rudolf Meisner

Jana Brejchová

Markétina matka

Jana Preissová

pradlena Lorencová, Tomášova matka

Vlastimil Hašek

holič Gustav Hrdlička/silueta strýce

Zdeněk Jílek

Voice by Mirko Musil
učitel hudby

Markéta Hrubešová

zrzavá holčička

Jiří Leitgeb

livrejovaný kočí

Miroslav Novotný

šprt Ládecký

Antonín Smolík

vrátný

Daniela Vacková

slečna Máňa

Miloslav Štibich

zřízenec v parku

Pavel Klikar

hudebník/silueta dirigenta

Jan Burle

hudebník

Ondřej Ernyei

hudebník

Michal Hejna

hudebník

Zbyněk Malý

hudebník

Milan Pěkný

hudebník

Jan Štolba

hudebník

Tomáš Velínský

hudebník

Luděk Říman

silák

Václav Tytl

zřízenec

Gabriela Vozková

dubl za Lucii Novotnou

Crew and creators

Director

Ota Koval

Second Unit Director

Zdeněk Zelenka, Tomáš Tintěra

Assistant Director

František Nejedlý

Based on

Béla Balázs (Opravdový blankyt /Az igazi égszínkék/ – pohádka)

Screenplay

Josef Hanzlík

Shooting Script

Ota Koval

Director of Photography

Josef Vaniš

Second Unit Photography

Václav Helliman

Camera Operator

Bohumil Vodička

Production Designer

Jan Oliva

Assistent Production Designer

Václav Litoš

Film Editor

Zdeněk Stehlík

Assistant Film Editor

Ruth Kubalíková

Sound Designer

Jiří Lenoch

Production Manager

Jaroslav Solnička

Unit Production Manager

Ludmila Venclíková, Milan Štěch

Unit Production Manager

Zdeněk Podhola, Irena Sedláčková, Vítězslava Marčíková

Cooperation

Lenka Mojžíšová (klapka), Miloš Schmiedberger (fotograf)

Music

Music Composed by

Štěpán Lucký

Selected Music

Leoš Janáček (Sinfonietta)

Music Performed by

FISYO (Music Conducted by František Belfín), Nora Grumlíková

Songs

Mně darovalo děvčátko prstýnek

Singer Jiří Zahajský

Chlupatý kaktus

Song Composer E. F. Burian
Writer of Lyrics Josef Gruss
Singer E. F. Burian

Pletla kytku v rozmarýnku

Song Composer lidová píseň
Singer dívčí sbor

Production info

Original Title

Modré z nebe

Czech Title

Modré z nebe

English Title

The Blue Gift from Heaven

Category

film

Typology

featuretheatrical distribution

Genre

children, fairytale

Origin country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1983

Production Year

1983

Production specifications

withdrawal from distribution 30 June 1990

Premiere

premiere 1 February 1984 /suitable for youths/

Creative Group

4. dramaturgicko-výrobní skupina, Stanislav Rudolf (vedoucí 4. dramaturgicko-výrobní skupiny)

Technical info

Duration typology

feature film

Duration in minutes

78 min

Original length in metres

2 245 meters

Distribution carrier

16mm, 35mm

Aspect ratio

1:1,37

Colour

colour

Sound

sound

Sound system/format

mono

Versions

Czech

Dialogue languages

Czech

Subtitles languages

without subtitles

Opening/End credits languages

Czech

Awards

Vítěz

Event: Komise pro posuzování a hodnocení technické kvality filmů

1984
Praha / Czechoslovakia