''The Nightingale'' is a 1981 film directed by Christine Edzard and produced by

Richard B. Goodwin Richard B. Goodwin (born 13 September 1934) is a British film producer. As a producer, he received an Academy Award nomination for '' A Passage to India'' oscars.org Accessed 2016-2-18 (1984). His other films include ''The Tales of Beatrix Potte ...

Sands Films Sands Films is a small British film production company, founded by producer Richard Goodwin and director Christine Edzard in the early 1970s, and based in Rotherhithe, London. The company is known for its production of costumes for period dramas ...

Studios in London. The film features Richard Goolden, Mandy Carlin and

John Dalby John Leonard Burkitt Dalby (April 22, 1929 – July 13, 2017) was an English singer, pianist and composer. Dalby was hailed in London and New York City for his witty and sophisticated cabaret performances. As an accomplished entertainer, he was ...

. The music by Beethoven was arranged by Michael Sanvoisin and cinematography was by

Christopher Challis Christopher George Joseph Challis BSC, FRPS (18 March 1919 – 31 May 2012) was a British cinematographer who worked on more than 70 feature films from the 1940s onwards. Career After working as camera operator on several films for Michael ...

. The film uses puppets to tell

Hans Christian Andersen Hans Christian Andersen ( , ; 2 April 1805 – 4 August 1875) was a Danish author. Although a prolific writer of plays, travelogues, novels, and poems, he is best remembered for his literary fairy tales. Andersen's fairy tales, consisti ...

's tale about the song of a nightingale heard by the little kitchen girl at the Emperor of China's palace.

Production

, the production company that made the film, is owned and run by Christine Edzard, the screenwriter and director known for her meticulous filmmaking, often based on Victorian English sources, and her husband

. Their other productions include ''

Stories from a Flying Trunk ''Stories from a Flying Trunk'' is a 1979 film based on three stories by Hans Christian Andersen. It was devised, written and directed by Christine Edzard and produced by John Brabourne and Richard Goodwin. The music by Giacchino Rossini was ...

'' (1979), ''

Biddy Biddy or Biddie is a given name which may refer to: People * Biddy Anderson (1874–1926), South African cricketer * Biddy Baxter (born 1933), English television producer * Biddy Dolan (1881–1950), American Major League Baseball player * Bidd ...

'' (1983), '' Little Dorrit'' (1987), '' The Fool'' (1990), ''

As You Like It ''As You Like It'' is a pastoral comedy by William Shakespeare believed to have been written in 1599 and first published in the First Folio in 1623. The play's first performance is uncertain, though a performance at Wilton House in 1603 has b ...

'' (1991), ''

Amahl and the Night Visitors ''Amahl and the Night Visitors'' is an opera in one act by Gian Carlo Menotti with an original English libretto by the composer.Menotti, Gian-Carlo: ''Amahl and the Night Visitors (piano-vocal score)'', G. Schirmer, Inc., 1997. It was commission ...

'' (1996), ''

The IMAX Nutcracker ''The IMAX Nutcracker'' is a 1997 short film directed by Christine Edzard based on The Nutcracker and the Mouse King by E. T. A. Hoffmann. It was produced by Celia Bannerman, Andrew Gellis, Lorne Orleans and Olivier Stockman at Sands Films Studi ...

'' (1997), ''

The Children's Midsummer Night's Dream ''The Children's Midsummer Night's Dream'' is a 2001 film based on the play ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' by William Shakespeare. It was written and directed by Christine Edzard and produced by Olivier Stockman. The music by Michel Sanvoisin was ...

'' (2001) and '' The Good Soldier Schwejk'' (2018). Like ''

'', ''The Nightingale'' is based on a story by

, with elaborate costumes and intricate sets. The film used

stop-frame animation Stop motion is an animated filmmaking technique in which objects are physically manipulated in small increments between individually photographed frames so that they will appear to exhibit independent motion or change when the series of frames i ...

with figures made of sheet lead, including their fingers, to stop the moving parts from fracturing during filming.

Reception

''The Nightingale'' won an award at the 12th International Short and Documentary Film Festival in Lille, January 1982.

References

External links

''The Nightingale'' at Sands Films''Filmmakers Directory: Christine Edzard'' at British Council
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nightingale (1981 film) 1981 films British historical drama films 1981 drama films 1980s English-language films 1980s British films Films based on works by Hans Christian Andersen Films produced by Richard Goodwin (producer) Works based on The Nightingale (fairy tale)