Zdeněk Miler

Zdeněk Miler (Czech pronunciation: [ˈzdɛɲɛk ˈmɪlɛr]; 21 February 1921 – 30 November 2011) was a Czech animator and illustrator best known for his Mole (Krtek or Krteček in original) character and its adventures.

Zdeněk Miler
Born(1921-02-21)21 February 1921
Kladno, Czechoslovakia
Died30 November 2011(2011-11-30) (aged 90)
Nová Ves pod Pleší, Czech Republic
Resting placeVyšehrad Cemetery
OccupationCartoonist, film director
LanguageCzech
NationalityCzech
GenreChildren's fiction
Notable worksKrtek

Early years

Miler was born in Kladno just west of Prague, the capital of what was then Czechoslovakia. He became an animator partly because of the Nazi occupation of Czechoslovakia. He took part in the demonstrations held consequent to the death of Jan Opletal, which led to the closing of universities and colleges. He escaped being sent to a concentration camp and instead wound up working as an animator.

Miler enjoyed painting as a child. His hobby developed when he joined the national graphic school in Prague in 1942. He later studied at the College of Arts and Crafts (Uměleckoprůmyslová škola Praha). In 1948, he began work at the cartoon studio Baťa in Zlín. There, he learned the important practical skills relating to film production, specializing in animated films. After the Second World War, he started work at the cartoon company Bratři v triku and worked first as draughtsman, then author and director. He later became the head of the company.

In 2001, Miler announced that he would no longer be making more films, citing health reasons.

Death

Having retired in 2001, Zdeněk Miler lived at a nursing home in Prague. He was later diagnosed with a form of demyelinating disease, which was strongly suspected to be either Guillain–Barré syndrome or multiple sclerosis. He eventually contracted bronchopneumonia, making his condition even worse than before.

On 30 November 2011, Miler died at a nursing home from cardiac arrest secondary to bronchopneumonia, less than three months before his 91st birthday.[1][2] Miler was cremated on the day after his death, and he is interred at the Slavín tomb in Prague's Vyšehrad Cemetery.[3]

Krtek (the mole)

Miler made about 70 films. In approximately fifty of them, the protagonist was his most famous creation, the small mole (Krtek in Czech). The idea for its creation came when he was commissioned to make an educational film for children in 1956. He was not happy with the script he was given. Since he was strongly influenced by the films of Walt Disney, he looked for an animal as the main character. Later, he said that the idea to use a mole as his main character came to him when he stumbled over a mole hill during a walk.[4] The first film was titled Jak krtek ke kalhotkám přišel (How the mole got his trousers), which won a Silver Lion at the Venice Film Festival. In the beginning, the mole spoke, but Miler wanted his creation to be understood everywhere in the world, so he decided to use his daughters as voice actors, reducing the speech to short non-figurative exclamations in order to express Krtek's feelings and world perception. His daughters were also his test audience, who got to see the films first. Thus, Miler could see whether his message resonated with children.

Krtek was a huge success in Czechoslovakia, Eastern Europe, and Germany from the beginning, and today Krtek can be seen in over eighty countries.

Works

Krtek

Episode English title Czech title Year Duration NV DVD #*
01.How Mole Got His TrousersJak krtek ke kalhotkám přišel195711:511
02.Mole and the CarKrtek a autíčko196314:3019
03.Mole and the RocketKrtek a raketa196508:40
04.Mole and the Transistor SetKrtek a tranzistor196808:1010
05.Mole and the Green StarKrtek a zelená hvězda196907:3010,1
06.Mole and the Chewing GumKrtek a žvýkačka196907:2010
07.Mole in a ZooKrtek v Zoo196906:0510
08.Mole as a GardenerKrtek zahradníkem196906:5510,1
09.Mole and the HedgehogKrtek a ježek197008:2510
10.Mole and the LollipopKrtek a lízátko197008:0010,1
11.Mole and the TVKrtek a televizor197005:3010
12.Mole and the UmbrellaKrtek a paraplíčko197107:1010,1
13.Mole as a PainterKrtek malířem197209:3519
14.Mole and the MatchesKrtek a zápalky197405:3019
15.Mole and the MusicKrtek a muzika197405:1519
16.Mole and the TelephoneKrtek a telefon197405:2519
17.Mole as a ChemistKrtek chemikem197405:3019
18.Mole and the CarpetKrtek a koberec197405:4019
19.Mole as WatchmakerKrtek hodinářem197405:2519
20.Mole at ChristmasKrtek o Vánocích197505:4519
21.Mole as PhotographerKrtek fotografem197505:4519
22.Mole and the EggKrtek a vejce197505:3519
23.Mole and the BulldozerKrtek a buldozér197505:4319
24.Mole in the DesertKrtek na poušti197505:5219
25.Mole and the CarnivalKrtek a karneval197505:2519
26.Mole in TownKrtek ve městě198228:3133
27.Mole in a DreamKrtek ve snu198428:0933
28.Mole and the MedicineKrtek a medicína198728:0844
29.Mole as a Movie StarKrtek filmová hvězda198827:4744
30.Mole and the EagleKrtek a orel199228:0550
31.Mole and the ClockKrtek a hodiny199428:0450
32.Mole and the CoalKrtek a uhlí199504:1033
33.Mole and His FriendsKrtek a kamarádi199505:1833,1
34.Mole's WeekendKrtek a víkend199505:0533
35.Mole and the RobotKrtek a robot199505:0033,1
36.Mole's and the CelebrationKrtek a oslava199505:0433
37.Mole and the Little DucksKrtek a kachničky199505:0033
38.Mole and the SubwayKrtek a metro199705:0044
39.Mole and the MushroomsKrtek a houby199704:2844
40.Mole and the Little MouseKrtek a myška199705:1944
41.Mole and the Little HareKrtek a zajíček199705:1144
42.Mole and the MotherKrtek a maminka199705:2044
43.Mole and the FloodKrtek a potopa199705:04
44.Mole and the SnowmanKrtek a sněhulák199805:0944,1
45.Mole on VacationKrtek a dovolená199801:15
46.Mole and cottageKrtek a domek1998
47.Mole and the chicksKrtek a tresne1998
48.Mole and snailKrtek a šnek1998
49.Mole and jewelsKrtek a sperky1998
50.Mole and tvKrtek a televize1998
51.Mole and the Little FrogKrtek a žabka1998
52.Mole and painterKrtek a malirem1998
53.Mole and balloonKrtek a balonek1998
54.Mole and boxKrtek a krabice1998
55.Mole and hatKrtek a klobouk1998
56.Mole magicianKrtek kouzelnik1998
57.Mole and duckKrtek a kacenka1998
58.Mole and the FluteKrtek a flétna199905:0550,1
59.Mole and the SpringKrtek a pramen199905:3350
60.Mole and the GrumblerKrtek a šťoura199905:2150
61.Mole and the SwallowKrtek a vlaštovka200004:2550
62.Mole and the Little FishKrtek a rybka200005:0250
63.Mole and the Little FrogKrtek a žabka200205:2050,1

Other films

Year Czech title English title
1948O milionáři, který ukradl slunceThe Millionaire Who Stole the Sun
1958Měsíční pohádkaMoon Story
1960Jak štěňátko dostalo chuť na medHow the Puppy Wanted Honey
1960O štěňátkuAbout the Puppy
1960Jak štěňátko chtělo malé pejskyHow the Puppy Wanted Little Dogs
1960Jak sluníčko vrátilo štěňátku voduHow the Sun Gave the Puppy Water Back
1961O nejbohatším vrabci ve světěAbout the World's Richest Sparrow
1963Rudá stopaRed Footprint
1963O Čtverečkovi a TrojúhelníčkoviAbout the Square and the Triangle
1968SametkaVelvet
1977Romance helgolandskáA Heligoland Romance
1978Cvrček a strojThe Cricket and the Machine
1978Cvrček a pavoukThe Cricket and the Spider
1978Cvrček a housličkyThe Cricket and the Violin
1979Cvrček a slepiceThe Cricket and the Chicken
1979Cvrček a pilaThe Cricket and the Saw
1979Cvrček a bombardónThe Cricket and the Bomber
1979Cvrček a basaThe Cricket and the Double Bass

References

  1. Minovitz, Ethan. "Zdenek Miler, creator of "Little Mole," dead at 90". Big Cartoon News.
  2. "Zemřel Zdeněk Miler. Otec Krtečka, kterého nám závidí Hollywood" (in Czech). 30 November 2011. Archived from the original on 30 June 2015. Retrieved 21 January 2016.
  3. Kolina, Josef (20 March 2012). "Potomci slavných neplatí za hroby. Místo bude tvůrce Krtečka". tyden.cz (in Czech). Retrieved 24 December 2022.
  4. Riley, John (23 December 2011). "Zdenek Miler: Czech animator known for his lovable Mole character". The Independent. Archived from the original on 7 May 2022. Retrieved 24 December 2011.
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