''Springman and the SS'' ( cs, Pérák a SS) is a 1946

Czechoslovak Czechoslovak may refer to: *A demonym or adjective pertaining to Czechoslovakia (1918–93) **First Czechoslovak Republic (1918–38) **Second Czechoslovak Republic (1938–39) **Third Czechoslovak Republic (1948–60) **Fourth Czechoslovak Repub ...

animated short film directed by

Jiří Trnka Jiří Trnka (; 24 February 1912 – 30 December 1969) was a Czech puppet-maker, illustrator, motion-picture animator and film director. In addition to his extensive career as an illustrator, especially of children's books, he is best kno ...

featuring

Pérák, the Spring Man of Prague Pérák, the Spring Man (Czech language, Czech: ), was an urban legend originating from the Czechoslovakia, Czechoslovak city of Prague during the German occupation of Czechoslovakia in the midst of World War II. In the decades following the war, ...

. The film is also known as ''The Chimney Sweep'' in the United States. The film competed at

1946 Cannes Film Festival The 1st annual Cannes Film Festival was held from 20 September to 5 October 1946. Twenty-one countries presented their films at the "First Cannes International Film Festival", which took place at the former Casino of Cannes. Only one year after ...

Plot

chimney sweep A chimney sweep is a person who clears soot and creosote from chimneys. The chimney uses the pressure difference caused by a hot column of gas to create a draught and draw air over the hot coals or wood enabling continued combustion. Chimneys ...

disguises as a

Spring-heeled Jack Spring-heeled Jack is an entity in English folklore of the Victorian era. The first claimed sighting of Spring-heeled Jack was in 1837. Later sightings were reported all over the United Kingdom and were especially prevalent in suburban Lon ...

-like figure during the Nazi occupation. The heroic and mischievous black-clad "Springer", with a mask fashioned out of a sock and defying the

curfew A curfew is a government order specifying a time during which certain regulations apply. Typically, curfews order all people affected by them to ''not'' be in public places or on roads within a certain time frame, typically in the evening and ...

, is capable of performing fantastic leaps due to having couch springs attached to his shoes. He taunts the occupying

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

army sentries and the

Gestapo The (), abbreviated Gestapo (; ), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe. The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of Prussia into one or ...

before escaping in a

surrealistic Surrealism is a cultural movement that developed in Europe in the aftermath of World War I in which artists depicted unnerving, illogical scenes and developed techniques to allow the unconscious mind to express itself. Its aim was, according to l ...

slapstick Slapstick is a style of humor involving exaggerated physical activity that exceeds the boundaries of normal physical comedy. Slapstick may involve both intentional violence and violence by mishap, often resulting from inept use of props such ...

chase across the darkened city.

Cultural impact

Trnka's postwar interpretation of Pérák as a quasi-superhero formed the basis for sporadic revivals of the character in Czech

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imagination, imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, Paral ...

and comic book stories.

Home release

''Pérák a SS'' is featured in a

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kin ...

anthology of World War II

propaganda Propaganda is communication that is primarily used to influence or persuade an audience to further an agenda, which may not be objective and may be selectively presenting facts to encourage a particular synthesis or perception, or using loa ...

cartoons, ''Cartoons for Victory'', which was released on 2 May 2006.

References

External links

* * 1946 films 1946 animated films 1946 short films 1940s animated short films 1940s animated superhero films Czechoslovak animated short films Films directed by Jiří Trnka Czech animated short films Superhero comedy films Fictional chimney sweepers Czech resistance to Nazi occupation in film Czech war films Czech superhero films Films based on urban legends Czechoslovak black-and-white films Films directed by Jiří Brdečka Films with screenplays by Jiří Brdečka Czech World War II films Czechoslovak World War II films 1940s Czech films {{1940s-short-animation-film-stub