Karel Zeman

A look at the life, work and importance of Czech filmmaker Karel Zeman (1910-89), a genius of world cinema, a wizard of special effects, revealing his sources of inspiration and his revolutionary filming techniques.

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Seventy-year-old filmmaker Karel Zeman recapitulated his thirty years of work in the field of animated and trick films. The film Karel Zeman for Children includes excerpts from Baron Prášil, The Tale of Hansel and Gretel, Mr. Prokouk, King Lávra and Journey to the Prehistoric Times. The film is presented on the 100th anniversary of the birth of this important figure of Czech cinema.

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A brief visit to the animation workshop of famous Czech director Karel Zeman.

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A glass blower imagines that his creations come to life. A story of love contained within a single drop of rain. A voyage into ethereal beauty.

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Young knight John travels the world in search of fame and fortune, but also to help others and prove himself. However, things go dire fast and he becomes burdened with life's hardships. But then he meets a pretty water nymph, Mary.

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Beggar boy Krabat is lured to apprentice for an evil, one-eyed sorcerer. With a number of others, he works at the sorcerer's mill while learning black magic. Every Christmas, one of the lads has to face the master in a magical duel, where the boy never stands a chance because the master is the only person allowed to use a secret spell.

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Five different exploits of Sinbad the sailor where he gets mixed up with the pretty daughters of exotic potentates, with powerful monsters that threaten his existence, and with all sorts of teeming jungle life.

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When a comet passes the Earth at close range, it pulls a small part of North Africa with it. Carried along are a bunch of people, among them Angelika, who has just escaped from a ruthless weapon dealer's ship, and her two brothers, who are searching for her. Then there's a group of natives planning a rebellion against the French colonists. All conflicts become secondary when the people finally realize that they're doomed to live together on an alien planet. However, this time of peace and happiness won't last for long...

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Five young people take off in a lighter-than-air machine at the Prague Centennial Exhibition. In an Art Nouveau style, the film consists of live action generally shot in black and white, as well as hand-drawn, stop-motion, and cutout animation. Various live-action and animated elements are often composited into the same scene.

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During the Thirty Years' War, ploughman Petr, recruiter Matěj and country girl Lenka are caught up in both sides of the war and experience many adventures before they find happiness.

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A 20th century man lands on the Moon and discovers that Baron Munchausen has beaten him to it, accompanied by Cyrano de Bergerac and the characters from Jules Verne's novels about the conquest of the satellite.

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A film of the Czech multimedia theatre production, Magician's Lantern. Eight Czechoslovak directors filmed a choreographic performance conceived and directed by director Alfred Radok and artist Josef Svoboda. This performance consists of twelve scenes: "Introduction", "Airport", "Rhythms", "Cymbal Concert", "Inspiration", "Hoop Dancer", "Spartakiade", "Dvořák's Slavonic Dance", "Prague Spring", "Love is a Fatal Game", "SL'UK", and "Finale".

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As the world progresses into the industrial age, a professor studying the "nature of pure matter" is spirited away by a would-be dictator and connived into building a super-bomb, as a young reporter and a girl rescued from the sea attempt to warn him of their mutual kidnapper's intentions to dominate the world with a new and more-deadly-yet weapon.

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Story of Mr. Prokouk, who having read too many detective stories sees criminals everywhere.

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Four schoolboys go on an awe-inspiring expedition back through time, where they behold landscapes and creatures that have long since vanished from the earth.

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Inspired by a Persian fairytale, and told in the ornate style of illustrated Persian manuscripts; set on a remote island, its inhabitants discover a legendary treasure that brings both joy and grief.

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A silent promotional film directed by the great Karel Zeman.

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A king hides an embarrassing secret - and it causes him to execute every barber who cuts his hair.

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A glass blower imagines that his creations come to life. A story of love contained within a single drop of rain. A voyage into ethereal beauty.

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After a hard day at work, Mr. Prokouk decides to invent a machine to ease his labor. But inventing is work too, and Mr. Prokouk spends more time dreaming about inventions than actually inventing anything. Can he find an easy solution?

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Shortfilm from the Mr. Prokouk series. Mr. Prokouk wants to be a filmmaker, but the making of a film has more complications than he expected.

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Mr. Prokouk postpones the filming and decides to leave for the agricultural brigade.

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Cobbler Mr. Prokouk starts working in an office where there is a lot of paperwork too big for him.

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Animals try to escape from a flood.

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Mr. Prokouk finds a horseshoe and thinks it's a good luck charm. So, he decides to take it with him home and find a suitable place for it. He soon discovers that the horseshoe brings him nothing but bad luck.

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