Hedgehog in the Fog

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Hedgehog in the Fog
Hedgehog in the Fog on the 1988 USSR stamp
Directed byYuri Norstein
Written bySergei Grigoryevich Kozlov
Produced bySoyuzmultfilm
StarringAleksey Batalov
Maria Vinogradova
Vyacheslav Nevinny
Narrated byAleksey Batalov
CinematographyAlexandr B. Zhukovskiy
Edited byNadezhda I. Treshchyova
Music byMikhail A. Meyerovich
Release date
October 23, 1975
Running time
10 min. 29 s.
CountrySoviet Union
LanguageRussian

Hedgehog in the Fog (Russian: Ёжик в тумане, tr. Yózhik v tumáne, IPA: [ˈjɵʐɨk f tʊˈmanʲɪ]) is a 1975 Soviet animated film directed by Yuri Norstein[1] and produced by the Soyuzmultfilm studio in Moscow.[2][3] The Russian script was written by Sergei Grigoryevich Kozlov, who also published a book under the same name.

In 2006, Norstein published a book titled Hedgehog in the Fog, listing himself as an author alongside Kozlov.[4]

Plot[edit]

Hedgehog (voiced by Maria Vinogradova) sets off for his evening visit to his friend the Bear-Cub. Every evening, the two meet, sit on a log, have tea and count the stars. They hunger over the roof of the Bear-Cub's house, and the chimney dividing the Bear-Cubs to the right and the Hedgehogs to the left. This evening, Hedgehog is bringing Bear-Cub some raspberry-jam as a special treat. As Hedgehog heads out, a sinister-looking eagle-owl begins to stalk him, though only to be distracted by a small pool and a hollow stump that echoes.

As he walks through the woods, pondering of what the Bear-Cub would say when receiving the raspberry-jam, Hedgehog sees a beautiful white horse, standing in the fog. Curious as to whether the horse will sink in the fog when she goes to sleep. Hedgehog decides to walk down from the small hill and explore the fog for himself, where it is so thick he can barely see his own paws. Hedgehog tried calling for the horse, but the horse didn't respond.

Hedgehog was then startled by a leaf floating down with a snail riding on it, which then slid into the fog. Hedgehog picked up the leaf, but then saw a shadowy creature resembling an elephant appearing, and then disappearing, accompanied by breathing. Hedgehog placed the leaf back onto the ground and fled into the fog. Little did he know, the white horse was grazing and snorted the leaf aside. Hedgehog was then startled by a black bat, though wasn't by the Owl who just hooted at him.

Hedgehog then sensed a large shape behind him. Finding a stick, and setting down his raspberry-jam, he poked at the large shape to find that it is a hollow tree where the leaf came from. Examining it, he then realizes that he has lost his raspberry-jam and searches frantically for it. He then found a firefly, and having it perched on a twig, he used it as a light to shine through the fog, showcasing an outlined cathedral of trees before another firefly took the firefly away, leaving Hedgehog lost in the thick fog.

Hedgehog then found himself surrounded by the owl, the bat, the shadowy elephant, the snail, and the leaf, all the while hearing the Bear-Cub calling his name. Becoming more and more confused and frightened until falling before a cocker spaniel, the real identity of the shadowy elephant, who just sniffed at him, yawn, and ran off when his owner whistled for him. But no soon as the dog left, he came back and placed the raspberry-jam he found within Hedgehog's arms before leaving him.

Hedgehog then heard the Bear-Cub calling his name, and attempting to get to the Bear-Cub's house through the fog, he fell into a river. He is resigned to let the river take him where it will, seeing the stars, and the white horse staring down at him. but a mysterious voice asks who is he and how did he get in the river. Hedgehog responds, then the voice (implied to belong to a fish) takes Hedgehog to shore on his back, where Hedgehog finds himself back in the woods. Hedgehog thanks his rescuer, with the voice responding "you are welcome".

Hedgehog finally arrived outside the Bear-Cub's house and sat on a log, where an insect-clustered light glowed with a wicker chair and a teapot with a teabag standing next to it. The Bear-Cub (voiced by Vyacheslav Nevinny) then arrived after frantically searching for his friend, telling him how he called and called but he didn't answer. The Bear-Cub then told him that he had already warmed the samovar and had gotten out the wicker chair to make it more comfortable to count the stars, so they can drink tea and eat raspberry-jam, which Hedgehog gave to the Bear-Cub. He then reminded that he had gotten the twigs to put in the samovar. Hedgehog asked if the twigs were juniper twigs, which reminded the Bear-Cub, before yelling to Hedgehog of who else but to count the stars with him.

The two friends sit by the fire and drink their tea and eat their raspberry-jam. The Bear-Cub talks on and on while Hedgehog thought how nice it is to be together, but then Hedgehog thought about the white horse in the fog.[5][6]

Creators[edit]

Hedgehog in Kyiv
Role Name
Director and Animator Yuri Norstein (Ю́рий Норште́йн)
Writer Sergei Grigoryevich Kozlov (Серге́й Григо́рьевич Козло́в)
Art Director Francheska Yarbusova (Франче́ска Я́рбусова)
Animator Yuri Norstein (Ю́рий Норште́йн)
Camera Operator Alexandr Borisovich Zhukovskiy (Алекса́ндр Бори́сович Жуко́вский)
Composer Mikhail Alexandrovich Meyerovich (Михаи́л Алекса́ндрович Мееро́вич)
Sound Operator Boris Pavlovich Filchikov (Бори́с Па́влович Фи́льчиков)
Script Editor Natalya Nikolayevna Abramova (Ната́лья Никола́евна Абра́мова)
Voice Actors Aleksey Batalov (Алексе́й Бата́лов) Narrator (Расска́зчик, Rasskáztchik)
Maria Vinogradova (Мари́я Виногра́дова) Hedgehog (Ёжик, Yózhik)
Vyacheslav Nevinny (Вячесла́в Неви́нный) Bear-Cub (Медвежо́нок, Medvezhónok)
Film Editor Nadezhda Ivanovna Treshchyova (Наде́жда Ива́новна Трещёва)

Awards[edit]

  • 1976—Frunze All-Union Film Festival: Hedgehog in the Fog "best animated film"
  • 1976—Tehran Children's and Youth Film Festival: Hedgehog in the Fog "best animated film"
  • 2003—Tokyo All time animation best 150 in Japan and Worldwide: Hedgehog in the Fog "№1 Animated film of all the time"

Production[edit]

Director Yuri Norstein in 2009

The fog effects were created by putting a very thin piece of paper on top of the scene and slowly lifting it up toward the camera frame-by-frame until everything behind it became blurry and white.[7]

Role in Soviet animation[edit]

Soviet-era children's animation and literature was faced with the task of producing politically acceptable content. Anthropologist Serguei Oushakine (Sergey Ushakin) recognizes this atmosphere of indefinite deferment in the animation, stating: "The main thing is the work of imagination, or more precisely, the terror and pleasure with which it is linked. The final scene of pleasure, to which these various phantasmal and/or realistic experiences should indeed have led, is not included in the plot."[8] This is evident through the hedgehog's anxiety and fixation on the horse, even after he succeeds in meeting the bear for tea.

Legacy[edit]

An English Dub of the film was made for Channel 4 in the United Kingdom for Christmas in 1998. Few changes were made, with strawberry-jam replacing raspberry-jam.

Hedgehog in the Fog was ranked No. 1 in a poll at the 2003 Laputa Animation Festival where 140 animators from around the world voted for the best animated films of all time.[9]

Hayao Miyazaki, acclaimed animator of Studio Ghibli stated that he drew his inspiration from many animators including Yuri Norstein.[10][11]

Since January 2009, the main character (the Hedgehog) from the movie has a statue in the city center of the capital of Ukraine, Kyiv.[12]

The film was spoofed in the third episode of the eighth season of the animated comedy series Family Guy, "Spies Reminiscent of Us", in 2009.[13]

The opening ceremonies for the 2014 Winter Olympics referenced this work, mentioning it in a list of signature Russian accomplishments and artists, including Fyodor Dostoevsky, Leo Tolstoy, and Sputnik.[14]

The series Kikoriki has an episode called Chiko in the Fog, reminiscent of Nornstein's cartoon in its composition and style.

The 16th episode of Pokémon the Series: Sun & Moon – Ultra Legends, "Memories in the Mist!" is inspired by this work.

The Cartoon Network Studios' series Summer Camp Island has an episode called "Pepper and the Fog", which is a tribute to the film.

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Jeff Lenburg (2006). Who's who in Animated Cartoons: An International Guide to Film & Television's Award-winning and Legendary Animators. Hal Leonard Corporation. pp. 264. ISBN 978-1-557-83671-7.
  2. ^ "The 77 best kids' films of all time. Hedgehog in the Fog (1975)". telegraph.co.uk. 6 May 2017. Retrieved 25 May 2017.
  3. ^ Clare Kitson (2005). Yuri Norstein and Tale of Tales: An Animator's Journey. Indiana University Press. pp. 46–48. ISBN 978-0-253-21838-4.
  4. ^ Ёжик в тумане. Ozon.ru. Retrieved on 2012-11-23.
  5. ^ Maureen Thomas,François Penz (2003). Architectures of Illusion: From Motion Pictures to Navigable Interactive Environments. Intellect Books. ISBN 978-1-841-50045-4.
  6. ^ Mark Whitehead (2004). Animation: The Pocket Essential Guide. Summersdale Publishers LTD - ROW. p. 113. ISBN 978-1-848-39836-8.
  7. ^ "Все свободны" – разговор на свободные темы. svoboda.org (2007-07-04)
  8. ^ Alaniz, José (2011). "Reviewed work: Veselye chelovechki: Kul'turnie geroi sovetskogo detstva. Nauchnaia biblioteka, I. Kukulin, M. Lipovetskii, M. Maiofis". Russian Review. 70 (3): 513–515. JSTOR 41289990.
  9. ^ 世界と日本のアニメーションベスト150. ふゅーじょんぷろだくと. 2003. ASIN 4893933671.
  10. ^ ""Снежная королева": почему без этого советского мультфильма у японцев не было бы аниме". russian7.ru (in Russian). 17 February 2019. Retrieved 2020-08-17.
  11. ^ "Bloomsbury Collections - Princess Mononoke - Understanding Studio Ghibli's Monster Princess". www.bloomsburycollections.com. Retrieved 2020-08-17.
  12. ^ "Monument to 'Hedgehog in Fog' appeared in Kyiv", UNIAN (2009-01-27)
  13. ^ "Family Guy" Spies Reminiscent of Us (TV Episode 2009)-Connections-IMDB
  14. ^ NBC sets talky tone with Olympics Opening Ceremony|Tube Talk|stltoday.com

External links[edit]

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