8mm Forum: Phoenix Films?

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Posted by Osi Osgood (Member # 424) on April 21, 2009, 06:58 PM:

Hey folks ...

I just got my first ever "Phoenix Films" print, a animated film called , Mole and the Christmas Tree," a very cute film.

Could anybody give me a history of this company and what they released?

ThanX

Posted by Mark Howard (Member # 870) on April 22, 2009, 11:54 AM:

Hi Osi,

I could be wrong, but I'm pretty sure Phoenix Films came from a shop of the same name in deepest, darkest Wigan in Lancashire. The owner of the business is a member of this forum (but forgot his name) and I'm sure he can put the record straight. I do seem to remember they released a few shorts.

Posted by Osi Osgood (Member # 424) on April 22, 2009, 06:41 PM:

Thanks for the beginning info!

Well, I do know that they released a number of the series of "Mole" cartoons. (A Czechoslovakian animated cartoon).

The box was rather interesting ... It was released in a 400ft box, yet you open the box up and your back to the old days of super 8 marketing ...

It had a foam insert and a 200ft reel in the middle. I assume that they merely never bothered with 200ft boxes, but I could be wrong.

Any more info ... from perhaps the forum member that ran this company? At any rate, whoever you are, thank you for using L.P.P. film stock!

Posted by Jean-Marc Toussaint (Member # 270) on April 23, 2009, 06:48 AM:

Wow, Osi, what a discovery.

The Little Mole is my daughter's favorite cartoon. In Czech Republic, Mole is bigger than Mickey Mouse. The original pilot was produced in the late fifties as an animated institutionnal film for the linen fabric industry. Since then, there's been dozens of episodes with varying length, from the standard 7-8 minutes (such as the Xmas tree, with Mouse and the Raven) to nearly 40 minutes ("Mole in the City", an obvious hommage to Jacques Tati's films "Playtime" and "My Uncle").

Some of them were spliced together and released theatrically here a couple of years ago. The DVD boxed set (nearly 6 hours of Mole Madness) was one of the biggest selling items last Xmas.

Thanks for opening this thread as it points me towards another very collectable series... Let's hope we can learn more about this company.

Posted by Rob Koeling (Member # 35) on April 23, 2009, 12:02 PM:

The Mole is a big hit in our house as well! They are much easier to find on 16mm. My personal favourite is Mole as a chemist

I thought Phoenix was an US company. I've got a few 16mm prints released by Phoenix. I think all I have is non-US animated stuff. All the prints I've got came from libraries.

Jean-Marc, I have some duplicates of 16mm Mole prints (and some of the Cricket; another Zdenek Miler cartoon). I'll dig them out if you're interested.

- Rob

Posted by Osi Osgood (Member # 424) on April 23, 2009, 12:46 PM:

I love the use of the voice for the Mole, which is the infectious giggles and laughter of an actual child. It really is charming.

So, we are still just about as clueless as to where Phoenix films comes from. Was it America or UK or elsewhere?

Posted by Jean-Marc Toussaint (Member # 270) on April 23, 2009, 12:50 PM:

The voice is an actual recording of Zdenek Miler's daughter.

Rob, yes, I'm interested in any Mole item that you wish to part with. Will you come to Ealing in May? I'm afraid I won't be travelling to the south-east before later this summer.

Posted by Steve Ellison (Member # 658) on November 09, 2015, 03:42 PM:

Just seen this after 6 years or so!. I was Phoenix Films from Wigan, but didn't release the Czech Mole series...I released a few Flip The Frog cartoon, a God Save The Queen trailer, and a couple of other shorts in the early 1980s. Until I read this thread today I didn't know there was an American company called Phoenix as well !!

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