By Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)
Look out Casper, you have competition now. “Das kleine Gespenst” (The Little Ghost) is getting a deal with Vertical Entertainment to bring it to North America. This family friendly product features a spirit who is just as charming as his American cousin. His only problem is that he only sees existence for an hour only after midnight. Technically, he’s asleep but his life is rather boring when he is confined to castle Eulenstein.
He has Schuhu, an owl, as a companion and the two live an isolated life. For this spirit, he yearns to see the light of day, but he cannot because of some unknown reason. When he finds freedom, he gets his fondest dream fulfilled: to see the outside world in daylight. What happens next is one huge adventure to return from whence he came, namely the safety of the castle he haunts. Much like Casper, nobody in the living world really understands him.
This character is popular in Germany and is the creation of Otfried Preußler. The book has been adapted to media in various forms, from audio, film and play and has even been translated into other languages. But in North America, this novel / character is not as widely known. Due to this film’s success at the German Box Office since its debut nearly two months ago, and in recent festivals, it is getting international attention. No word has been said as to whether or not the release will be subtitled, redubbed or made direct to video. No matter what the format, this movie looks like something all kids must see.
In a report by Variety, Vertical’s co-president Peter Rich said: “ ‘The Little Ghost’ is one of those family films that just needs to be seen by a North American audience. The filmmaking, story-telling, and values based within the narrative are very much in line with what we believe the consumer state side needs more of. The CGI is fantastic and we just fell in love with the Little Ghost’s journey from the very start.”
Source: Variety