Kirikou and the Sorceress
Encyclopedia
Kirikou and the Sorceress () is a 1998 Franco-Belgian animated film written and directed by Michel Ocelot
. Drawn directly from West Africa
n folk tales, it tells of how a newborn boy saves his village by ridding them of the evil witch Karaba. It was so successful that it was followed by a midquel, Kirikou et les bêtes sauvages
, released in 2005, and adapted into a stage musical, Kirikou et Karaba, first performed in 2007.
, a boy named Kirikou is born in a spectacular way. But he's not a normal boy, because he can speak and walk immediately after being born. He is also very determined. His mother tells him that an evil sorceress has dried up their spring and devoured all the males of the village except for one. Hence the tiny Kirikou decides to accompany the last warrior, his uncle, to visit the sorceress. Kirikou tricks the sorceress and saves his uncle. He saves the children from being kidnapped by the sorceress's boat and saves them later again from the sorceress's tree. Next, he bursts the monster who was drinking all the village's water. He then travels to ask his wise old grandfather about the sorceress, and faces many obstacles in the process. The grandfather finds that Kirikou is always asking questions, which is a good thing. The grandfather tells him that she is evil because she suffers: bad men put a poisoned thorn in her back. Kirikou manages to trick the sorceress and removes the thorn. The sorceress is cured. She kisses Kirikou and he becomes an adult. Love reigns.
. The lush African colours and patterns were inspired by the works of the "naïve" French painter "Le Douanier" Henri Rousseau
. Ocelot's latest feature film Azur et Asmar
explores the world of North African and Islamic folklore, architecture, art and calligraphy.
. The English dubbing, also directed by Ocelot, was made in South Africa
.
The cast of the English version of the film.
Michel Ocelot
Michel Ocelot is a French writer, character designer, storyboard artist and director of animated films and television programs and a former president of the International Animated Film Association...
. Drawn directly from West Africa
West Africa
West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of the African continent. Geopolitically, the UN definition of Western Africa includes the following 16 countries and an area of approximately 5 million square km:-Flags of West Africa:...
n folk tales, it tells of how a newborn boy saves his village by ridding them of the evil witch Karaba. It was so successful that it was followed by a midquel, Kirikou et les bêtes sauvages
Kirikou et les bêtes sauvages
is a 2005 French animated feature film. It premiered at the 2005 Cannes Film Festival on 13 May and, unlike its predecessor, received only festival screenings in all English-speaking territories...
, released in 2005, and adapted into a stage musical, Kirikou et Karaba, first performed in 2007.
Plot
In a little village somewhere in West AfricaWest Africa
West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of the African continent. Geopolitically, the UN definition of Western Africa includes the following 16 countries and an area of approximately 5 million square km:-Flags of West Africa:...
, a boy named Kirikou is born in a spectacular way. But he's not a normal boy, because he can speak and walk immediately after being born. He is also very determined. His mother tells him that an evil sorceress has dried up their spring and devoured all the males of the village except for one. Hence the tiny Kirikou decides to accompany the last warrior, his uncle, to visit the sorceress. Kirikou tricks the sorceress and saves his uncle. He saves the children from being kidnapped by the sorceress's boat and saves them later again from the sorceress's tree. Next, he bursts the monster who was drinking all the village's water. He then travels to ask his wise old grandfather about the sorceress, and faces many obstacles in the process. The grandfather finds that Kirikou is always asking questions, which is a good thing. The grandfather tells him that she is evil because she suffers: bad men put a poisoned thorn in her back. Kirikou manages to trick the sorceress and removes the thorn. The sorceress is cured. She kisses Kirikou and he becomes an adult. Love reigns.
Aesthetics
The Kirikou films are characterised by their flat, two-dimensional, look, as opposed to current trends in three-dimensional computer animationComputer animation
Computer animation is the process used for generating animated images by using computer graphics. The more general term computer generated imagery encompasses both static scenes and dynamic images, while computer animation only refers to moving images....
. The lush African colours and patterns were inspired by the works of the "naïve" French painter "Le Douanier" Henri Rousseau
Henri Rousseau
Henri Julien Félix Rousseau was a French Post-Impressionist painter in the Naïve or Primitive manner. He was also known as Le Douanier , a humorous description of his occupation as a toll collector...
. Ocelot's latest feature film Azur et Asmar
Azur et Asmar
Azur & Asmar: The Princes' Quest is a 2006 French animated fairytale fantasy film written and directed by Michel Ocelot and animated at the Paris animation and visual effects studio Mac Guff Ligne...
explores the world of North African and Islamic folklore, architecture, art and calligraphy.
Nudity
The film contains several instances of asexual female nudity, and male nudity to a lesser extent, as would be the norm in pre-colonial Africa. This was controversial enough to delay the film's US release until 2002.Cast
The original French voice acting was performed by a cast of West African actors and schoolchildren and recorded in DakarDakar
Dakar is the capital city and largest city of Senegal. It is located on the Cap-Vert Peninsula on the Atlantic coast and is the westernmost city on the African mainland...
. The English dubbing, also directed by Ocelot, was made in South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
.
The cast of the English version of the film.
- Theo Sebeko — Kirikou (voice)
- Antoinette Kellermann — Karaba (voice)
- Fezele Mpeka — Uncle (voice)
- Kombisile Sangweni — The Mother (voice)
- Mabutho 'Kid' Sithole — The Old Man/Viellard (voice)
Distributors
- ArgentinaArgentinaArgentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
– Prodifilms - BrazilBrazilBrazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
– Cult Filmes (VHS), Paulinas Multimídia (DVD) - CanadaCanadaCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
– Remstar Distribution - DenmarkDenmarkDenmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
– Angel Films A/S - France – Gébéka Films
- GermanyGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
– MFA Filmdistribution - JapanJapanJapan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
– Albatros Film (2003, theatrical), Ghibli Museum LibraryGhibli Museum LibraryThe is the collection of classic and non-Japanese animated films which have been dubbed or subtitled and released in Japan by Studio Ghibli, in collaboration with Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment and Cinema ANGELICA...
(DVD) - RussiaRussiaRussia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
– RUSCICO (2004, video) - SpainSpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
– Alta Classics S.L. Unipersonal - United KingdomUnited KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
– British Film InstituteBritish Film InstituteThe British Film Institute is a charitable organisation established by Royal Charter to:-Cinemas:The BFI runs the BFI Southbank and IMAX theatre, both located on the south bank of the River Thames in London... - United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
– ArtMattan Productions (2000, dubbed)
Awards
| Year | Award Show | Award | Category | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Annecy International Animation Film Festival | Grand Prix | Best Animation Film | Won |
| 1999 | Castellinaria International Festival of Young Cinema | Environment and Health Award | Won | |
| 1999 | Castellinaria International Festival of Young Cinema | Silver Castle | Won | |
| 1999 | Chicago International Children's Film Festival | Adult's Jury Award | Feature Film and Video – Animation | Won |
| 1999 | Chicago International Children's Film Festival | Children's Jury Award | Feature Film and Video – Animation | Won |
| 1999 | Cinekid Festival Cinekid Festival The Cinekid Festival is the largest international film, television and new media festival for children aged 4 to 14 held at the Westergasfabriek in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. It started as a small children's film festival and has now grown into a large organisation that develops activities for... |
Cinekid Film Award | Won | |
| 1999 | Oulu International Children's Film Festival | C.I.F.E.J. Award | Won | |
| 1999 | Oulu International Children's Film Festival | Starboy Award | Nominated | |
| 2000 | Ale Kino! – International Young Audience Film Festival | Silver Poznan Goat | Best Animation Film | Won |
| 2000 | Cartagena Film Festival Cartagena Film Festival The Cartagena Film Festival, or Festival Internacional de Cine y T.V. de Cartagena de Indias. is a Colombian film festival which focuses on the promotion of Colombian television programs, Latin American films, and videos... |
Prize of the Children's Cinema Competition Jury | Best Feature Film for Children | Won |
| 2000 | Montréal International Children's Film Festival | Special Jury Prize | Feature Film | Won |
| 2002 | British Animation Awards | British Animation Award | Best European Feature Film | Won (tied with Chicken Run Chicken Run Chicken Run is a 2000 British stop-motion animation film made by the Aardman Animations studios, the production studio of the Oscar-winning Wallace and Gromit films... ) |
External links
- Kirikou and the Sorceress official USA Web site
- Kirikou et la sorcière at Le Palais des dessins animés
- BBCi review
- The Guardian review