Looking for the Pigeon’s House

Country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1985

Production year

1984

Premiere

1 January 1986

Runtime

72 min

Category

film

Genre

children

Typology

featuretheatrical distributionlong

Original title

Hledám dům holubí

Czech title

Hledám dům holubí

English title

Looking for the Pigeon’s House

Summary

In 1985 Věra Plívová-Šimková cemented her reputation as a successful maker of films for children and adolescents with this story about village children who have to overcome numerous neighbourly disputes. The children of the Buchar and Pištor families have all manner of pastimes: Tom is a pigeon fancier, Dan has taken to modern music while Markéta is an ardent horse rider. Similarly to other pictures by the filmmaker, this is a story about competing boys, first loves and a sense of belonging among family and friends. As usual, Plívová-Šimková also here relies on the performances of young, generally not so well-known – or today already forgotten – actors (the role of Markéta is, however, played by the then 17 year-old Michaela Kuklová). When it comes to the film’s name, Jiří Schelinger’s hit song Holubí dům (Pigeon House) has nothing to do with the film. It actually features fresh and catchy tunes by Michael Kocáb and Michal Pavlíček.

Synopsis

The Buchars have three sons. Tom is a passionate pigeon fancier, the secondary school student, Dan, is into modern music and constantly plays his drums and cymbals. The smallest, Cipísek, is still a baby in the pram. The Pištorks, their neighbours are not very nice people and their son, Pišta, does not behave well among his friends in the village. The girls, Markéta and Jana, mostly like riding horses. Dan likes Markéta. Tom sends messages to his friends, Tonda and Jenda, who are also pigeon fanciers. But Dan's drums make Toms pigeons very nervous and so Tom tries to do anything to destroy these musical instruments. Dan and his friends, Jarda and Rudík, play guitars and they form a band together with Dan - "Music-Trio". They attend dancing classes but don't much like it. The Buchars have a nice dog, Boryna, but one day Marketa's horse unfortunately kills the dog with its hoof. The pigeon fanciers are also sad. Pišta shoots Tom's pigeon with a sling. Tom wants to have it out with him, but Mrs. Pištorková pretends her son is not at home. The unhappy Tom has a fight with his brother. In the fight they graze the pram which tips over and the small Cipísek falls out of the pram. Fortunately, his injury is not serious. The accident leads to reconciliation between Tom and Dan. There is a funny feast outside of the village, where a film crew also visits. Pišta is punished and falls in dung water. Dan's drums and cymbals are heard over the whole village and Tom' s pigeons fly cheerfully above the roofs.

Cast

Miroslav Čermák

student Dan Buchar

Radek Teč

žák Tom, Danův bratr

Alfred Bitner

Jarda, Danův kamarád

Pavel Honzák

Rudík, Danův kamarád

Antonín Korbel

Tonda, Tomův kamarád

Václav Jůn

Jenda, Tomův kamarád

Kateřina Sušková

Gábina

Jan Šesták

Cipísek, nejmladší Buchar

Filip Tenkl

Pišta

Jiří Racek

Martínek zvaný Prcek

Jitka Zelenohorská

maminka Bucharová

Pavel Nový

agronom Buchar, otec Dana, Toma a Cipískův otec

Václav Helšus

Pištorka, soused Bucharových, Pištův otec

Milena Šajdková

Pištorkova žena, Pištova matka

Naďa Wildová

Jana, Danova sestřenice

Karel Bělohradský

předseda hasičů Kořínek

Bohumila Dvořáková

Věra Plívová-Šimková

tančí na diskotéce v závěru filmu

Crew and creators

Second Unit Director

Magdalena Pivoňková

Assistant Director

Petr Slabý

Director of Photography

Antonín Holub

Second Unit Photography

Martin Grošup

Camera Operator

Petr Hojda

Production Designer

Vladimír Labský

Assistent Production Designer

František Dvořák

Set Designer

Petr Matouš, Lubomír Kafka, Richard Staněk

Costume Designer

Jiří Sochovský

Film Editor

Eva Bobková

Assistant Film Editor

Helena Lehovcová

Sound Designer

Karel Jaroš

Production Manager

Blažej Vráb

Unit Production Manager

Rudolf Mos, Vladimír Tišer

Unit Production Manager

Rudolf Mráz, René Kořenář

Cooperation

Renata Čihulková (klapka), Alena Červená (fotografka)

Music

Music Performed by

Studiová skupina Michaela Kocába (Music Conducted by Michael Kocáb)

Production info

Original Title

Hledám dům holubí

Czech Title

Hledám dům holubí

English Title

Looking for the Pigeon’s House

Category

film

Typology

featuretheatrical distribution

Genre

children

Origin country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1985

Production Year

1984

Production specifications

literary Screenplay approved 21 March 1984
start of filming 1 June 1984
technical Screenplay approved 12 June 1984
end of filming 14 December 1984
projection approval 1 April 1985

Premiere

premiere 1 January 1986 /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

72 min

Original length in metres

2 052 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

Festival: 25. festival filmů pro děti Gottwaldov

1985
Zlín / Czechoslovakia
Věra Plívová-Šimková

Vítěz

Festival: 25. festival filmů pro děti Gottwaldov

1985
Zlín / Czechoslovakia
Miroslav Čermák