The Long Shadow Over The Atlantic

The Long Shadow Over The Atlantic
(continued from page 2)

In a small country the support of the ticket buying audience is not enough. "One cannot do a feature in Norway without public support," says Jacobsen. Out of the total budget of 42 million Norwegian crowns (US$5.4 million), the public, i.e. government, support covered 15 million crowns. "5 6 million crowns went for learning. This was our first animated feature, we made some mistakes," Jacobsen says. "For marketing, we used perhaps some 2.5 million crowns."

The target audience? The entire population. "In a country of four million people you cannot make it for a certain group or you will be bankrupt. That might work in a country of 40 million people, but not in Norway. The most difficult task was to convince people that Norwegian animation succeeds when it's made professionally. We need understanding that this is a professional business, filmmaking."

The "C" Word
In most cases thinking only about the home market is not a working solution. Most European producers favour co-operation, which is not always easy. Stewe Walsh produced A Monkey's Tale, a brand new film by Frenchman Jean-François Laguionie. The budget was collected from Germany, France, Britain and Hungary. "We had 21 sources of money altogether," Walsh counts. "We didn't want a US financier; their demands were too different for us. When I showed the film to a US distributor, they first asked who was singing the songs. Every time the song is on the radio it is free advertising for the film." A Monkey's Tale will have quite a comprehensive distribution in Europe, it started with 65 prints in France and is now running with 100 prints. The story of the monkey king and his country has already been sold to many countries as well.


Kirikou et la sorciere, released in France last December, has reached the one million spectator mark in France. Courtesy of Les Armateurs.

A true European success is Kirikou et la sorciere by Frenchman Michel Ocelot. It is a beautifully drawn fairy tale about a small boy Kirikou and the witch who rules his village. It is far removed from the sweet style we see in many Disney productions; images are simple but powerful. The small budget was even turned into a source of power. The animation by the Rija Studio in Latvia's capital of Riga is good work, and attractive music was added thanks to Youssou N'Dour.

Kirikou was released in France last December and has reached the one million spectators mark in France. I spoke to the director Michel Ocelot at the Annecy Festival in June and he believed that Kirikou will be among the top ten box office hits in France this year. The film has also been exported to several countries in Europe and other corners of the world.