Jiří Brdečka

Writing

Jiří Brdečka

Born — Died

1917-12-24 — 1982-06-02

Known for

Writing

Credits

44 titles

Jiří Brdečka (24 December 1917 – 2 June 1982) was a Czech writer, artist, and film director. Brdečka was born in Hranice (then in Austria-Hungary) to a literary family, as his father, Otakar Brdečka (1881 – 1930), was a writer under the pseudonym Alfa. Brdečka studied philosophy and aesthetics at Charles University in Prague until the German occupation of Czechoslovakia forced the closing of the school in 1939. He then became an administrative clerk at the Prague Municipal Museum and found occasional work as a newspaper journalist and cartoonist. He worked as a press agent for the studio Lucernafilm from summer 1941 to the end of 1942. In 1943 Brdečka took a job as an animator, and by 1949…

Known for

The Fabulous World of Jules Verne poster
7.2

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.

The Fabulous World of Jules Verne

1958

The Fabulous Baron Munchausen poster
7.4

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.

The Fabulous Baron Munchausen

1962

The Mysterious Castle in the Carpathians poster
6.1

In 1897, in a castle near the town of Werewolfville in the Carpithians, a slightly deranged Professor Orfanik experiments with his new inventions which include, even at this early date, television and a film camera. He is also an obsessed opera fan, keeps the body of his favorite diva preserved in a crypt in the castle. In order to keep away nosy visitors, the baron's mad-scientist assistant invents all sorts of spooky phenomena in order to give the castle a creepy reputation.

The Mysterious Castle in the Carpathians

1981

Prince and the Evening Star poster
6.2

A wonderful fairytale about looking for love, defeating evil and learning some valuable moral lessons on the way. The story begins with the young Prince Velen, who is left in charge of the castle and his three sisters. During the night he has a visitation and before he knows it, all his sisters are married off and gone away, and himself falls in love with beautiful Večernice. Now he is faced with the King's wraths and charged with a quest. The journey, however, hides obstacles and danger; not only treacherous merchants and robbers, but also a evil wizard Mrakomor...

Prince and the Evening Star

1979

Adela Has Not Had Supper Yet poster
7.5

When famous detective Nick Carter visits Prague, he becomes involved in strange case of a missing dog and even stranger carnivorous plant. He becomes convinced that he is standing against his greatest enemy, the Gardener, who supposedly died years ago in a swamp...

Adela Has Not Had Supper Yet

1978

Lemonade Joe poster
7.1

A satire of the Great American Way, with Lemonade Joe a "clean living" gunfighter who drinks only Kola-Loca Lemonade and convinces everyone else in town (with his gun skills) that all "real men" drink ONLY lemonade!

Lemonade Joe

1964

Film credits

2010s · 1 titles

1960s · 2 titles

Behind the camera

The Fabulous World of Jules Verne poster
7.2

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.

The Fabulous World of Jules Verne

1958

The Fabulous Baron Munchausen poster
7.4

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.

The Fabulous Baron Munchausen

1962

The Mysterious Castle in the Carpathians poster
6.1

In 1897, in a castle near the town of Werewolfville in the Carpithians, a slightly deranged Professor Orfanik experiments with his new inventions which include, even at this early date, television and a film camera. He is also an obsessed opera fan, keeps the body of his favorite diva preserved in a crypt in the castle. In order to keep away nosy visitors, the baron's mad-scientist assistant invents all sorts of spooky phenomena in order to give the castle a creepy reputation.

The Mysterious Castle in the Carpathians

1981

Prince and the Evening Star poster
6.2

A wonderful fairytale about looking for love, defeating evil and learning some valuable moral lessons on the way. The story begins with the young Prince Velen, who is left in charge of the castle and his three sisters. During the night he has a visitation and before he knows it, all his sisters are married off and gone away, and himself falls in love with beautiful Večernice. Now he is faced with the King's wraths and charged with a quest. The journey, however, hides obstacles and danger; not only treacherous merchants and robbers, but also a evil wizard Mrakomor...

Prince and the Evening Star

1979

Adela Has Not Had Supper Yet poster
7.5

When famous detective Nick Carter visits Prague, he becomes involved in strange case of a missing dog and even stranger carnivorous plant. He becomes convinced that he is standing against his greatest enemy, the Gardener, who supposedly died years ago in a swamp...

Adela Has Not Had Supper Yet

1978

Lemonade Joe poster
7.1

A satire of the Great American Way, with Lemonade Joe a "clean living" gunfighter who drinks only Kola-Loca Lemonade and convinces everyone else in town (with his gun skills) that all "real men" drink ONLY lemonade!

Lemonade Joe

1964

The Emperor and the Golem poster
7.0

The Emperor's mismanagement of his country is provoking some in his court to plot to overthrow him. He feels successful, at least, when he discovers the legendary Golem, which he believes can protect him and even cure his imaginary illnesses but, when he disappears while on a bender, his kindly baker, who looks just like him, is mistaken for him, and begins to put things in order. However, the conspirators, not to be outdone, determine to bring the Golem back to life to do their bidding.

The Emperor and the Golem

1951

When the Cat Comes poster
7.0

While old Oliva tells a group of children about his life as a sailor and how he met Diana and her cat with sunglasses, a strange circus arrives in town.

When the Cat Comes

1963

Baton Out of the Bag poster
6.5

A poor musician with a good heart, as a reward for sharing even the last piece of bread despite being hungry himself, is rewarded with a miraculous napkin on which the best delicacies appear. However, a greedy innkeeper steals it from him along with a miraculous donkey from which ducats are pouring...

Baton Out of the Bag

1956

No artwork available
5.5

Trnka reached new heights of modernist abstraction with this innovative, surrealist mini-masterwork, which critic Jean-Pierre Coursodon praised as the Citizen Kane of animation.

The Gift

1947

No artwork available
NR

No synopsis available yet.

Papírové nocturno

1949

Once Upon a Time, There Was a King... poster
8.0

A selfish self-centered widowed ruler, barely tolerated by his subjects and called appropriately enough, 'King Myself, First' asks his three daughters to name the measure of their love for him. When one of them says, "more than salt", he banishes her from the kingdom. Not understanding what she meant the King assumes love can only be measured by precious metals or one's own talent, the 'correct' answers from his other two daughters. The arrogance of the King leads him to gather all the salt in the kingdom and destroy it. Of course, this backfires as he slowly learns the universal value of the substance, and of course, the essence of his daughter's reply. With the help of the wise and magical old 'herb woman', the King also learns what it means to be a true and wise ruler.

Once Upon a Time, There Was a King...

1955

No artwork available
NR

No synopsis available yet.

Neviditelní nepřátelé

1951

Joy of Love poster
6.0

This melancholy piece about the metamorphoses of love and the eternal dissatisfaction of human beings with what they have was inspired by the lyrics of the French song "Plaisir d'amour."

Joy of Love

1966

Joy of Love poster
6.0

This melancholy piece about the metamorphoses of love and the eternal dissatisfaction of human beings with what they have was inspired by the lyrics of the French song "Plaisir d'amour."

Joy of Love

1966

Das Feuer des Faust poster
9.0

Faustus wants to invent a fire that is stronger than all previous flames. Then death approaches him. In order to prolong his life, he makes a pact with Mephistopheles. When he has found the fire, he burns the contract and is ready to die. Death shows him life in the form of Margaret, with whom Faust falls in love. In order to regain his youth, he sells the flame to Mephisto. Faust enjoys the idyll of love while the Black Knight, Mephisto's servant, subdues the land with fire. When Faust refuses to enter the service of evil, his wife, child and home are destroyed by the flame. Faust makes another pact with Mephisto and invents a fire that blows up knights and devils. This time, Death orders him to discover the fire of life.

Das Feuer des Faust

1982

Why UNESCO? poster
NR

The cartoon film sets out to justify the existence of UNESCO as an instrument for world peace.

Why UNESCO?

1959

There Was a Miller on a River poster
NR

A picture based on an old folk song tells us a horrifying story about a soldier returning home after twenty years. His parents do not recognize him, they rob and kill him.

There Was a Miller on a River

1971

There Was a Miller on a River poster
NR

A picture based on an old folk song tells us a horrifying story about a soldier returning home after twenty years. His parents do not recognize him, they rob and kill him.

There Was a Miller on a River

1971

Springman and the SS poster
5.8

The first animated picture made by Jiří Trnka for adults. It is a comic story of a legendary chimney-cleaner who, with the help of a spring from an old lounge-chair, became the terror of the Prague-occupying SS troops in World War II.

Springman and the SS

1946

Springman and the SS poster
5.8

The first animated picture made by Jiří Trnka for adults. It is a comic story of a legendary chimney-cleaner who, with the help of a spring from an old lounge-chair, became the terror of the Prague-occupying SS troops in World War II.

Springman and the SS

1946

No artwork available
8.0

A short animated film based on the American folk song about a logger in the habit of stirring his coffee with his thumb.

The Frozen Logger

1962

No artwork available
8.0

A short animated film based on the American folk song about a logger in the habit of stirring his coffee with his thumb.

The Frozen Logger

1962

How Wise Aristotle Became Even Wiser poster
NR

A fanciful apocryphal tale about the famous Greek scholar, who is determined not to have his mind taken off educating young Alexander the Great, until Cupid makes him succumb to the temptations of a light-hearted young woman.

How Wise Aristotle Became Even Wiser

1970

How Wise Aristotle Became Even Wiser poster
NR

A fanciful apocryphal tale about the famous Greek scholar, who is determined not to have his mind taken off educating young Alexander the Great, until Cupid makes him succumb to the temptations of a light-hearted young woman.

How Wise Aristotle Became Even Wiser

1970

Revenge poster
NR

Film based on the story by the French writer Gérard de Nerval. A terrifying story that takes us to Paris in the time of the Three Musketeers. The magician Conin enchants evil that afterwards destroys him and a shy love-lorn young man named Eustach.

Revenge

1968

Revenge poster
NR

Film based on the story by the French writer Gérard de Nerval. A terrifying story that takes us to Paris in the time of the Three Musketeers. The magician Conin enchants evil that afterwards destroys him and a shy love-lorn young man named Eustach.

Revenge

1968

No artwork available
NR

A grotesque tale about the adventures of the owners of a miraculous heavenly coat that has the power to turn even the most hardened villain into a saint.

Andělský kabát

1948

No artwork available
NR

Adapting a 1930s song, Brdečka presents a ballad of true love between a miner and his sweetheart in a tale that ends in tragedy.

The Miner's Rose

1974

No artwork available
NR

Adapting a 1930s song, Brdečka presents a ballad of true love between a miner and his sweetheart in a tale that ends in tragedy.

The Miner's Rose

1974

No artwork available
NR

An experimental study in black and white tracing the stages of human life through the transformation of a man’s face.

The Face

1973

No artwork available
NR

An experimental study in black and white tracing the stages of human life through the transformation of a man’s face.

The Face

1973

Our Little Red Riding Hood poster
7.0

Czechoslovakian cartoon version of Little Red Riding Hood. Here, Red Riding Hood's family finds a way to take care of the wolf.

Our Little Red Riding Hood

1961

Our Little Red Riding Hood poster
7.0

Czechoslovakian cartoon version of Little Red Riding Hood. Here, Red Riding Hood's family finds a way to take care of the wolf.

Our Little Red Riding Hood

1961

Old Czech Legends poster
6.5

A monumental piece of art bringing the heroes of the ancient Czech myths back to life. The picture consists of seven parts: Cech the Forefather, Bivoj, Libuse, Premysl, Girls War, Horymir, Lucka War.

Old Czech Legends

1953

What I Haven't Told the Prince poster
NR

This original adaptation of Oscar Wilde's sad, socially conscious fairy tale, The Happy Prince, hinges on the conflict between fact and dream, reality and poetry. The contrast is reinforced by the film's visuals, confronting modern art with Gustave Doré's old engravings.

What I Haven't Told the Prince

1975

What I Haven't Told the Prince poster
NR

This original adaptation of Oscar Wilde's sad, socially conscious fairy tale, The Happy Prince, hinges on the conflict between fact and dream, reality and poetry. The contrast is reinforced by the film's visuals, confronting modern art with Gustave Doré's old engravings.

What I Haven't Told the Prince

1975

That Kind of Love poster
6.5

A student commits suicide out of unhappy love to a married man; story is recounted in retrospective by a "judge" who asks the audience to decide who is the guilty party.

That Kind of Love

1959

No artwork available
NR

No synopsis available yet.

Mouchy

1951

A Drop Too Much poster
6.4

A careful motorcyclist stops by a cozy pub on his way home to his sweetheart.

A Drop Too Much

1954