Croatian director Arsen Anton Ostojić is completing production and post-production on his most ambitious project to date, the 3D animated feature The Crystal Planet (Kristalni planet), which has been in production since the second half of 2020.

On the recently colonised Crystal Planet, 11-year-old Rea befriends a dinosaur-like cub named Burgy, who has been separated from his mother by a mutant monster. As Rea attempts to reunite Burgy with his mother, she faces a dangerous task when she and her friend Andy cross paths with the ruthless Governor, who seeks to exploit Burgy’s unique abilities for profit. Rea and Burgy must rely on their bond of friendship and courage to overcome the challenges and protect the delicate balance of life on the Crystal Planet.

The film features an impressive voice cast led by Academy Award winners Jeremy Irons, Vanessa Redgrave and Michael York. Irons voices the morally complex Governor Mordokan, while Redgrave and York lend their voices to the ancient subterranean species known as The Matriarch and The Patriarch. Negotiations are also under way with a fourth Hollywood legend to join the project. The English-language cast additionally includes Isabel Volava, Bastian Fuentes, Josh Morrison, Jessica Boone, Peter Hosking, Gregory Gudgeon, Bree Welch and Amélie Bellefeuille.

Based on an original idea by late Academy Award-winning animator Dušan Vukotić, the screenplay is written by Aleksandar Žiljak, Ostojić and Brett Shumway. Reflecting on the project’s origins, Ostojić explained that Vukotić, who was his professor, shared a draft of the script with him back in the 1990s. Years later, after inheriting the rights, he hesitated, as he was not sure if he could live up to the expectations surrounding such a project.

As a film director and screenwriter, Ostojić has earned more than 90 awards worldwide from over 140 festivals and competitions. His films have represented Croatia as official Academy Award candidates. He was nominated for a European Film Award for A Wonderful Night in Split and won the Golden Arena for Best Director at the Pula Film Festival for No One’s Son. Other notable credits include Halimina’s Path [+lire aussi :
critique
bande-annonce
fiche film] and F20.

Jakub Pištecký serves as animation supervisor, with Radek Růžička and Vanda Palisová as lead animators, and Stjepan Mihaljević as production designer. Tomaš Sysel is the director of photography, Lucie Haladová handles the editing, Mate Matišić composes the score, and Jan Čeněk and Richard Müller oversee the sound design. Casting is supervised by Jeremy Zimmermann. The visual development and animation are taking place at Alkay Animation Prague, one of Central Europe’s leading animation studios, also known for My Sunny Maad [+lire aussi :
critique
bande-annonce
interview : Michaela Pavlátová
fiche film], which won the Jury Prize at Annecy and earned a Golden Globe nomination.

Budgeted at €3.5 million, The Crystal Planet is now in its final stages, with technical completion expected by April 2026. The Croatian-Czech-Slovak co-production is being staged by Ostojić for Filmosaurus Rex, in co-production with Petr Horák for Alkay Animation Prague and Peter Badač for BFilm. The project is supported by the Croatian Audiovisual Centre, the Czech Audiovisual Fund, the Slovak Audiovisual Fund, Creative Europe – MEDIA, Eurimages, Croatian Television (HRT) and Czech Television. World sales are handled by German outfit Sola Media, with Solveig Langeland serving as executive producer. Falcon will distribute the film in the Czech Republic next August, while Blitz Film & Video will handle the Croatian release the same month.