Marek Beneš interview (2017)

A neat interview with Marek Beneš was posted on the Croatian website express.hr in September of 2017. Available here, this interview by Paula Bobanović is one of the better interviews with Marek posted online, so I'll translate it here. The images also come from that interview unless noted otherwise.

When did you get the idea to make a feature film with Pat & Mat?

The idea to bring Pat & Mat to the movie theaters was born in 2016, when the duo celebrated their 40^th birthday. Actually, they had originally appeared in cinemas, as the first episode was made to be distributed in movie theaters.

How did you find the team which made the whole movie and were production companies interested in financing the project?

This time everything happened in reverse. The movie was actually supposed to be a series made for television, but we released it in cinemas for the 40^th anniversary as well. All the work was done by one animator, while myself and my production company financed the movie on our own, without anyone's help.

in the Patmat film studio, 2014

In how many countries has the show been broadcast by now and in which countries is it currently airing?

My father said that the series was, around 30 years ago, bought by more than 80 countries, while my movie is currently being shown in 20, which include Croatia, South Korea, the Scandinavian countries, France and, of course, Czechia and Slovakia.

How old were you when your father started working on the series with his colleague, illustrator Vladimír Jiránek? Were you even interested in what they were doing since the show was actually meant for adults?

I distinctly remember being 16 years old when Pat & Mat were first born in our flat, specifically in our kitchen. I witnessed their rise to fame since day one. I often brought friends from my class and girls who I especially liked to my father’s studio.

From what material were the puppets made and what do you make them from today? Do you still keep the original puppets?

The original Pat & Mat heads were made by my father from eggshells. He filled the shells with plaster, glued the ears on and the stars were born. Unfortunately, the original puppets are now gone because they were broken from use. However, we still keep some of their parts in the studio, but today’s Pat & Mat are made exactly according to the originals. The only difference is that today we make their heads using 3D printers.

Who created their clothes and how where they made?

Set designers manufactured all of their tools, furniture, equipment, as well as their clothes and footwear. Some of it is original, like the drill, which is 40 years old, but many parts are new. Just recently we bought red and yellow cloth for their pullovers. As they have to look the same as on the originals, they were woven especially for Pat & Mat. As such, the smallest order was 25 square meters, so now we have enough material for the next 1000 years.

the drill, both a prop and a relic (foto: Ludvík Hradilek)

first used back in Kuťáci

and still doing its job in 2019

How tall actually are Pat & Mat?

Around 20 centimeters.

In communist times the color of their clothing was one of the things which bothered censors in Czechoslovakia. What was the problem?

They banned the first episode because Mat had a red and Pat had a yellow pullover, colors which were said to represent USSR and China, so the creators were told our friendly countries were being mocked. That’s why Mat temporarily wore a gray pullover.

Censors also claimed that Pat & Mat showed a “lack of socialist consciousness”. What did that mean exactly?

They nagged that Pat & Mat only entertained kids instead of educating them. They thought that the two showed kids how to destroy things, while the reality was completely the opposite. Children used to speak to my father and talk about ways Pat & Mat should do something without causing any damage. Children always understand everything. The censorship lasted until 1989. Today we only apply autocensorship.

How did they get their names? Do they come from chess moves?

No, their names are shortened forms of “Patlal” and “Matlal”, Czech expressions which are hard to translate, but would approximately mean “Clumsy” and “Awkward”. Speaking of chess, my father adored playing chess ― during the summer holidays we were arch-enemies.

What’s the hardest thing to animate?

Well, the hardest things to animate are natural elements such as fire, water and wind. We spend most of our time on that. It takes us a really large amount of time to shoot such scenes, while they only last a second or two on the screen. People watching that consider it normal and are not aware of the effort behind those two seconds.

How much do you usually need from the initial idea to the final product?

Some ideas are realized fast, some not so. We sometimes work with an animator to shoot an 8-minute episode for three months. After that, we spend additional time in the studio recording music and sound effects. The music had been composed by Petr Skoumal for each episode individually. Unfortunately, he passed away last year, so we are currently looking for a new composer.

You directed two episodes way back in the 1990s while your father was still alive. Was he satisfied with your work?

I began working on films as an amateur. Later, I worked with my father at the studio and after his death in 1995 I continued his work. He was overjoyed to have a successor. Also, my son is named Lubomír as well, named after his grandfather.

three Beneš generations flanked by another Pat & Mat maker, Vladimír Jiránek (1995)

Did you ever consider what would have happened had your family lived in Hollywood? How rich would you have been today?

First of all, it would have been wonderful to work in Hollywood conditions, but my father and I were always very happy because of Pat & Mat’s popularity.

Did you ever visit Croatia or do you plan to do so?

We often used to go on summer holidays to Croatia when it was still Yugoslavia. I am planning on visiting your coast again.