Pushchik Goes to Prague

Country

Czechoslovakia, Union of Soviet Socialist Republics

Copyright

1965

Production year

1964—1965

Premiere

5 November 1965

Runtime

86 min

Director

Lev Golub

Category

film

Genre

children

Typology

featuretheatrical distributionlong

Original title

Puščik jede do Prahy

Czech title

Puščik jede do Prahy

English title

Pushchik Goes to Prague

Parallel title

Puščik jedět v Pragu

Summary

Soviet director Lev Golub was involved in two Czech coproductions – humorous children’s story Puščik jede do Prahy (Pushchik Goes to Prague, 1965) and the wartime drama Borisek malý seržant (Little Boris, a Sergeant, 1975). The eponymous hero of the first film is a bear cub, which a Belorussian boy Jura promised to give to a Czech girl named Zdena at the international “Pioneers” (scouting) camp Artěk. Together with his friend Michas, Jura goes to the forest to find a suitable baby bear, which after various incidents ends up in Prague. Equally important of course is the search for a former partisan who fought the Nazis alongside the father of Michas … The screenwriters of the film – they included the Czech Jiří Plachetka – represent the friendship between the children as a natural continuation of the good relations between the Soviets and Czechs that began during the war. Making her debut in the role of an air hostess is Hana Brejchová, Forman’s “blonde” in Lásky jedné plavovlásky (Loves of a Blonde, 1965).

Synopsis

In a young socialist pioneers' camp Artek there are children from all over the world. Yura, a boy from Belarus, promises the Czech girl Zdena to catch her a bear cub in the virgin forest close to his home village, and send it to Prague for her. After they all return home, Zdena stubbornly reminds him of his promise. Yura gets many postcards from Prague with bears on them, painted by children whom the girl has proudly told about the promised gift. Yura's friend Mikhas agrees to help the boy with the hunt but they need time. They write Zdena a letter asking her to look for Jan, a former partisan living in Prague. Jan was in the same unit with Mikhas' father, major Vykhodko, and has lost an eye in battle. While the children ring up thousands of people in Prague named Jan, Mikhas and Yura secretly go to the forest. The journey is difficult but they finally find a little bear. The furious mother bear is looking for her cub, however, and so the boys run away from her and get lost. Back in Prague, the children have failed to trace Jan despite all their efforts. In the meantime, in Belarus, soldiers find the missing boys. A helicopter crew find the bear cub in the river where it has been swept by a stream. They name it Pushchik and bring it to Prague. Among the many people who greet it at the airport, there is an older man with a patch on one eye. This is the Jan they have been looking for. Mikhas and Yura, who have arrived in Prague together with Pushchik, can deliver him greetings and a knife, a keepsake from major Vykhodko.

Note

According to the production record, two-thirds of the film were shot in Belarusfilm production (USSR) and one-third in Prague, in Czechoslovak production.

Cast

Andrej Filatov

Voice by Jan Kraus
Jura Gromovič

Vladimir Semjonov

Michas, Jurův kamarád

Kateřina Trávníčková

Zdena Fialková

Alexandr Děgťar

Voice by Bohumil Švarc
major Michail Vasiljevič Vychoďko, Michasův otec

Valentina Ušakova

Voice by Antonie Hegerliková
Irina Fjodorovna, Jurova matka

Zoja Fedorova

Voice by Jiřina Petrovická
teta Fjokla

Rudolf Deyl ml.

Jan Odvážný

Vladimir Dorofejev

Voice by Antonín Zíb
Prochor Ivanovič

Alexej Petrovič Alexejev

ředitel školy Alexej Petrovič

Josef Beyvl

zelinář František Holátko

Zdeněk Dítě

vedoucí pošty Jan Poláček

Vladimír Menšík

hodinář Jan Poštulka

Helena Bendová

úřednice

Dimitrij Rafalský

příslušník VB

Antonín Soukup

host v restauraci

Jan Hrušínský

Zdenin spolužák

Mirenka Zichová

Alenka

Václav Podhorský

rybář

Helena Kačenová

Dubbing

Jiří Zahajský

hlas rotného Kotyna

Mirko Musil

hlas Jana Vomáčky v telefonu

Vladimír Čech

hlas muže ve frontě na poště

Crew and creators

Director

Lev Golub

Second Unit Director

Lada Vacková

Assistant Director

Valerij Rubinčik, Eliška Štíbrová

Screenstory

Jiří Plachetka

Shooting Script

Jiří Plachetka, Jurij J. Jakovlev

Dramaturg

G. Gubarevič

Director of Photography

Georgij Vdovenkov

Second Unit Photography

Jurij Cvetkov

Camera Operator

Bohumil Vodička

Production Designer

Jurij Bulyčev, Jan Pacák

Set Designer

Miloslav Dvořák, Petr Škorpil, Jan Drvota

Make-Up Artist

V. Antypov, František Novotný, Jana Pospíšilová

Assistant Film Editor

Eva Horázná

Titles Designed by

Miloš Nesvadba

Production Manager

Simeon Tulman, Josef Beran

Unit Production Manager

Jiří Holeček, Josef Císař

Unit Production Manager

Věra Venzarová

Cooperation

Jaroslava Vejvodová (klapka), N. Kuzněcova (práce se zvířaty – cvičitelka medvědů), A. Červinka (práce se zvířaty – cvičitel medvědů)

Dialogues of Czech version

Jaroslav Piskáček

Direction of Czech version

Irena Skružná

Music

Music Composed by

Jiří Srnka

Music Performed by

FISYO (Music Conducted by František Belfín)

Songs

Sluníčko

Song Composer Jiří Šlitr
Writer of Lyrics Jiří Suchý
Singer Kateřina Trávníčková

Production info

Original Title

Puščik jede do Prahy

Czech Title

Puščik jede do Prahy

English Title

Pushchik Goes to Prague

Parallel Title

Puščik jedět v Pragu

Category

film

Typology

featuretheatrical distribution

Genre

children

Origin country

Czechoslovakia, Union of Soviet Socialist Republics

Copyright

1965

Production Year

1964—1965

Production specifications

literary Screenplay approved 20 March 1964
technical Screenplay approved 20 May 1964
start of filming 25 June 1964
end of filming 10 March 1965
projection approval 25 September 1965

Premiere

premiere 5 November 1965 /suitable for youths/ (kino Mladých /1 týden/, Praha)
premiere 5 November 1965 /suitable for youths/ (celostátní)

Studio

Hostivař

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

86 min

Original length in metres

2 436 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: 1. mezinárodní festival filmů pro děti a mládež Gottwaldov

1965
Zlín / Czechoslovakia