LITTLE FROM THE FISH SHOP

MALÁ Z RYBÁRNY

By Jan BALEJ

ACTRIO STUDIO - as PROD

Romance - Completed 2015

When love hurts.

The tale of Little, the modern mermaid who went to live with humans and fell in love with one...


Festivals
& Awards

Fest. Animation Annecy - MIFA 2015
Official selection
Zlin Film Festival 2015
Opening film
Karlovy Vary 2015
Best Czech Films of 2015
Chicago International Children´s Film Festival 2015
In competition
Art Film Fest 2015
AWARDS: Jury Special Mention for Best Sound Design - Art Film Fest 2015 (Trenčianské Teplice, Slovakia)
Animasyros 2015
Audience Award
MONSTRA 2016
Jury Special Prize
    • Year of production
    • 2015
    • Genres
    • Romance, Drama, Animation
    • Countries
    • CZECH REPUBLIC, SLOVAKIA, GERMANY
    • Languages
    • CZECH, ENGLISH
    • Budget
    • 1 - 3 M$
    • Duration
    • 72 mn
    • Director(s)
    • Jan BALEJ
    • Writer(s)
    • Jan BALEJ, Ivan ARSENJEV
    • Synopsis
    • Deep underneath the surface of the sea, accompanied by the fish orchestra, the voice of the ocean is telling a story of the Sea King and his youngest daughter Little.

      With his mother and his three daughters, Little, Middle and Eldest, forced to abandon the devastated, plundered waters of their home and, the Sea King headed ashore to a port, to live amongst the humans. In a darkened fish shop in the heart of a bustling harbor district full of people from every corner of the world, they now live a monotonous life, reminiscing the days long gone.

      Little is still too young to leave the house without a chaperone so she observes the outside world mostly from behind the window of her room or the shop’s preparation room. Every day, the King’s oldest daughters make their rounds delivering freshly prepared fish delicacies all across the city. Every day, Little awaits her sixteenth birthday, so she could enter the world of humans - a world she feels so drawn to and dreams of so often.

      After every round of food deliveries, sisters tell Little about what they have seen and experienced that night. Little is always fascinated by those stories of everyday life and begins to imagine what they are like. Those vivid images – that some may say were dreams – have very little to do with reality.


      One day, the door of their fish shop flies open and in walks J.J. – a confident, handsome but somewhat brash young man. Little is totally charmed by his self-assured, streetwise demeanor and the pounding of the music coming from his car. For Little, it is love at first sight. From this moment forward her life will change its course. She knows she wants to see the world and be with J.J. What she doesn’t know, is that he owns one of the night clubs on Sinful Street. Madly in love, she seeks out a witch who lives in the underground sewers of the harbor, and strikes a deal with her. The witch performs her magic and rids Little of her fish tail. Little can now walk on a pair of two human legs. In return though, she has to accept a harsh curse. The witch warns her: “If your loves remains unrequited, you shall die.”
      And thus begins the love story of Little from the fish shop.
    • Partners & financing
    • SUPPORT: EURIMAGES, CZECH CINEMATOGRAPHY FUND, AUDIOVISUAL FUND, MFG FILMFÖRDERUNG BADEN-WÜRTTEMBERT
      COPRODUCERS: MIRACLE FILM, MARLEN MEDIA GROUP, MIRIQUIDIFILM, ČESKÁ TELEVIZE, HAFAN FILM, EMITA INVESTMENTS CZ, FILMPARK PRODUCTION, BYSTROUŠKA, TEAMWERK.DIE FILMPRODUKTION, VFX BOX, OK EXPRESS
    • Beginning of shooting
    • Oct 01, 2012
    • End of shooting
    • Jun 23, 2014