Wikipedia

Mavka: The Forest Song

Mavka: The Forest Song (Ukrainian: Мавка. Лісова пісня, romanized: Mavka. Lisova pisnia) is a 2023 English-language Ukrainian computer-animated fantasy comedy-drama film directed by Oleh Malamuzh and Oleksandra Ruban. Based on the 1918 play The Forest Song by poet Lesya Ukrainka, the film draws inspiration from Ukrainian and Slavic folk mythology.[3][8] The film premiered in Ukraine on March 2, 2023.[9]

Mavka: The Forest Song
Ukrainian theatrical release poster
Directed by
  • Oleh Malamuzh
  • Oleksandra Ruban
Screenplay byYaroslav Voitseshek
Based onThe Forest Song
by Lesya Ukrainka
Produced by
  • Iryna Kostiuk
  • Yehor Olesov
  • Anna Yelisieieva
Starring
Music by
Production
companies
Distributed by
  • Film.UA Distribution
  • Kinomania[3]
Release date
  • March 2, 2023 (2023-03-02) (Ukraine)
Running time
99 minutes[4]
CountryUkraine
LanguageEnglish[5]
Budget₴187.2 million[6]
Box office$17.8 million[7]

Plot edit

Many years ago, a sawmill owner trespasses beyond the Dark Mountain into the Enchanted Forest hoping to find a cure for his infant daughter who is ill. Lesh, the guardian of the forest, gives him a single drop from the Tree of Life, the source of the forest's power, to cure his daughter. Wanting all the power for himself, the sawmill owner returns with an army of villagers. The ensuing battle ends in chaos and the forest dwellers, at Lesh's request, close the entrance to the Enchanted Forest.

In the present day, a virtuous nymph named Mavka, wakes up in the Spring along with the rest of the forest dwellers, including her friend Hush and her kitty-frog companion Swampy. Mavka’s abundant kindness is criticized by the other nymphs, particularly Ondina, a water nymph. In a nearby village, a young musician named Lukas, driven by the need to cure his uncle Leo of an illness, enters the Enchanted Forest to find the Source of Life tree at the suggestion of Kylina, the adult daughter of the late sawmill owner, who wants to use the tree's nourishing power to obtain eternal youth for herself. When they meet, Mavka attempts to scare Lukas away, but once Lukas plays his sopilka, she falls for his musical talent. Thinking Lukas isn't evil, Mavka offers to give him a cure for his uncle and Lukas promises to leave the forest. He also promises to play his music to thank her. Hush reluctantly agrees to help them. Upon showing him around the forest and spending time together, feelings arise between Mavka and Lukas.

Lesh summons the forest dwellers to the Tree of Life with Lukas in disguise. Lesh announces that a new Guardian must take his place and during the ritual the Supreme Spirits of Nature choose Mavka. Ondina objects to the choice. Lukas speaks out in Mavka's defense but Ondina sees through his disguise and he gets chased out. Mavka allows Lukas to escape and gives him a drop from the Source of Life tree to cure his uncle, but he doesn't have time to play his music for her as he had promised. Ondina berates her for letting him go and then warns that he will eventually betray her. When Lukas returns, Kylina is not convinced that he came back empty-handed, so she orders her stylist, Frol, to keep an eye on him.

The following day, noticing that Lukas had dropped his sopilka during his escape, Mavka disguises herself to look human and goes to the village with Swampy to return the sopilka to Lukas and to try to make peace with the humans. Lukas invites Mavka to come to the village's spring festival and she accepts. At the festival, he gifts her a Vyshyvanka dress as well as a pendant he made with four carved runes symbolizing the elements of nature. They enjoy folk dancing and Lukas tries to make good on his promise to play his music for Mavka. However, when he plays, his music undoes Mavka's disguise and reveals her as a nymph to the village. Seizing the opportunity, Kylina locks Lukas away in the mansion's basement and turns the villagers against Mavka, but Lesh saves her. Lesh tells Mavka the story of what had happened many years before, and how he once used the Spark of Rage, a pyrokinetic power bestowed on him by the Supreme Spirit of Fire, the One Who Sits in the Rock. But that power came at a price, the price being his immense strength. He tells her the relationship between humans and the forest is a never-ending cycle of fire and death.

Kylina tries to get Lukas to mark the location of the Source of Life tree on her map, but he refuses. When he figures out Kylina captured Mavka he agrees to her demands, only to realize that Frol was disguised as Mavka. Kylina drowns Lukas in her basement and then rallies the villagers to raid the forest. Mavka tries to reason with Kylina by telling her the story of her father, the sawmill owner, but Kylina reveals that she is not the sawmill owner's daughter, but is instead his wife and that she made him lie about their "daughter" being ill and also that she was the mastermind behind the battle of many years ago due to her selfish desire for immortality and eternal beauty. Kylina then lies and manipulates Mavka by telling her that Lukas took advantage of her kindness and sold the Tree of Life's location for money. A battle starts between the humans and the forest dwellers. Mavka, sad with regret, summons the One Who Sits in the Rock to bestow her with the Spark of Rage, promising to pay the price with her life. With the power of the Spark of Rage, she drives the villagers out of the Enchanted Forest but loses her sense of empathy and drives out the forest dwellers as well. A deadly firestorm descends on the village.

Hush, Swampy, and Dot, Lukas' dog, save Lukas from drowning and together they rush to stop Mavka from decimating the village. Realizing that Mavka can't hear his words, Lukas plays his sopilka, inspiring the villagers and forest dwellers to sing along in an effort to wake Mavka from her trance and stop the firestorm. They succeed, but Makva is near death and Lukas cries as he pleads for her to come back. While Mavka's soul lies in the Void, she realizes that Lukas never betrayed her. The One Who Sits in the Rock reaffirms that he and the Supreme Spirits made the right choice in choosing Mavka as the Guardian for she bridged the gap between the humans and the forest dwellers, but since she offered to pay the price with her life she must now remain in the Void for all of eternity. Mavka refuses, saying that her heart is now full and will never die. Impressed by this, the Supreme Spirits return her to life and she awakens. Mavka and Lukas kiss as they reaffirm their love and the villagers and the forest dwellers agree to stop fighting and make peace.

In a post-credits scene, Kylina finds the Tree of Life after being exiled and bathes in its power and is regressed into a baby as a result.

Voice cast edit

Ukrainian cast edit

The voice cast of the Ukrainian dialogue includes:[5][10]

English cast edit

H.D. Quinn, Alyson Leigh Rosenfeld, Christian Sanford, and Sarah Smithton provided additional voice performances.

Soundtrack edit

The film featured animated versions of the members of Ukrainian band, DakhaBrakha,[11] with its soundtrack featuring music composed by the band.[12]

The production team recreated authentic dance and ceremonial elements with the help of experts from the Ivan Honchar Museum National Center for Folk Culture. The music sequence includes an authentic vesnyanka ("spring folk song") performed by DakhaBrakha, with the musicians not only creating the music, but also their likenesses appearing in animated form as Lukas's friends, the village musicians.[13][14]

Production edit

It was first reported in September 2015 that Film.UA was working on a full-length 3D animated film. The company's press service announced the start of production of a film based on the play The Forest Song by poet Lesya Ukrainka.[15] In March 2017, Film.UA and Animagrad held the first international pitching of Mavka: The Forest Song at Europe's largest animation forum Cartoon Movie,[16] at which Ukraine was represented for the first time.

A teaser trailer for the film was released on July 18, 2017.[17] An official trailer was released on February 1, 2023, which features the song "Language of the Wind" performed by Khrystyna Soloviy and Artem Pyvovarov.[17]

Release edit

After seven years of production, Mavka: The Forest Song premiered in Ukraine on March 2, 2023 and set box office records in the country with its opening, beating out Avatar: The Way of Water (2022) with 189,048 admissions.[18] In the first week of showings, the film's box office totaled ₴24.9 million, which became a box office record among domestic Ukrainian releases.[19] For six weekends at the cinema, 1,011,735 tickets were sold for the film, and the domestic box office totaled ₴127,531,211.[20] For ten weekends at the cinema, 1,144,522 tickets were sold for the film, and the domestic box office totaled ₴143,930,311.[21]

Internationally, the film is being released in a number of markets with more than 80 countries having acquired distribution rights. More than 50 countries and territories have also set release dates.[18] The film was released in France on March 29, 2023, followed by the Netherlands on April 19, Italy on April 20,[22] Portugal on May 4,[23] Germany, Switzerland and Austria on June 8,[24][25] Poland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania on June 14,[18] and Vietnam on June 16.[26]

In the United States, the film was released on DVD and digital download on August 15 by Shout! Factory.[27] In the United Kingdom, the film was released for a limited time on July 28, 2023.[28] Release dates for Canada, Latin America, South Korea, Mongolia, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and other countries are expected to be announced at a later time.[18]

See also edit

External links edit

References edit

  1. ^ "Mavka: Full Cast & Crew". IMDb. Retrieved May 15, 2023.
  2. ^ "Mavka. The Forest Song". FILM.UA Group. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  3. ^ a b "Світло подолає темряву! Основний трейлер анімації "Мавка. Лісова пісня"". Media Business Reports. February 1, 2023. Archived from the original on March 13, 2023. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  4. ^ "Mavka: The Forest Song". British Board of Film Classification. June 8, 2023. Retrieved June 8, 2023.
  5. ^ a b "Мавка. Лісова пісня" у світовому прокаті — продюсерка про успіх мультфільму, сиквел і критику ["Mavka. The Forest Song" at the global box office — a producer about the success of the animated film, the sequel and criticism] (Television production) (in Ukrainian). Suspilne Kultura. April 5, 2023. Event occurs at 04:40. Retrieved April 15, 2023 – via YouTube. Англійський оригінал дав те, що ми експортували нашу українську культуру у 80 країн світу. [The English-language original gave the fact that we exported our Ukrainian culture to 80 countries of the world.]
  6. ^ "Державна фінансова підтримка на виробництво національного фільму "Мавка. Лісова пісня" / Державна аудиторська служба України". Archived from the original on May 12, 2021. Retrieved September 6, 2021.
  7. ^ "Mavka: The Forest Song". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved November 27, 2023.
  8. ^ "About the project". MAVKA the forest song | animated feature film MAVKA. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  9. ^ Toma Mironenko (March 2, 2023). "Леся Українка за 190 млн грн. Український мультфільм-довгобуд "Мавка" вийшов у прокат. Як його продали майже на всю Європу". Forbes.ua (in Ukrainian). Archived from the original on February 20, 2023. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  10. ^ "Ukrainian celebrities are in Mavka's Forest: who voiced animated characters in the feature MAVKA. THE FOREST SONG". film.ua. January 23, 2023. Archived from the original on April 8, 2023. Retrieved April 15, 2023.
  11. ^ "About the project". MAVKA the forest song | animated feature film MAVKA. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
  12. ^ "DakhaBrakha band recorded first tracks for Mavka. The Forest Song OST". MAVKA the forest song | animated feature film MAVKA. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
  13. ^ "Автентичний образ Мавки та саундтрек-веснянка від "ДахаБраха": нове музичне відео від "Мавка. Лісова пісня"". usfa.gov.ua (in Ukrainian). Retrieved June 13, 2023.
  14. ^ "CREATORS OF "MAVKA. THE FOREST SONG" ANIMATED FEATURE PRESENT A NEW SPECIAL MUSIC VIDEO FROM ONE OF THE ICONIC FILM'S SCENES OF A RITUAL SPRING DANCE". MAVKA the forest song | animated feature film MAVKA. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
  15. ^ Kateryna Slipchenko (September 30, 2015). "Автори мультфільму "Мавка. Лісова пісня" обіцяють хеппі-енд". ZAXID.NET (in Ukrainian). Archived from the original on June 5, 2016. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  16. ^ Перші кадри фільму «Мавка. Лісова пісня» Archived 2017-04-07 at the Wayback Machineна анімаційному форумі Cartoon Movie
  17. ^ a b Geek, U. A. (January 17, 2023). ""Мавка. Лісова пісня": Хронологія — Проблеми — Перспективи • UA Geek". UA Geek (in Ukrainian). Retrieved February 11, 2023.
  18. ^ a b c d Mercedes Milligan (March 7, 2023). "Ukrainian Animated Feature 'Mavka. The Forest Song' Brings Magic to Theaters in 80 Countries". Animation Magazine. Archived from the original on March 11, 2023. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  19. ^ "Обійшла "Крижане серце" та "Співай". "Мавка" стала найкасовішою анімацією за всю історію українського кінопрокату". Українська правда _Життя. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  20. ^ "Після шостого вікенду у кіно "Мавку" переглянуло 1 011 735 глядачів, а бокс-офіс сумарно склав 127 531 211 грн!". usfa.gov.ua (in Ukrainian). April 10, 2023. Retrieved April 15, 2023.
  21. ^ "За десять тижнів «Мавки» у національному прокаті було продано 1 144 522 квитків, а касові збори склали 143 930 311 грн" [During the ten weeks of "Mavka" at the national box office, 1,144,522 tickets were sold, and the box office totaled UAH 143,930,311]. usfa.gov.ua (in Ukrainian). May 10, 2023. Archived from the original on May 19, 2023. Retrieved May 22, 2023.
  22. ^ "Український мультфільм "Мавка. Лісова пісня" 20 квітня вийде у кінопрокат в Італії". detector.media. Детектор медіа. April 12, 2023. Retrieved April 15, 2023.
  23. ^ "4 травня стартував широкий кінотеатральний прокат «Мавки. Лісової пісні» у Португалії" [On May 4, the wide cinema distribution of "Mavka. Forest song" in Portugal]. usfa.gov.ua (in Ukrainian). May 9, 2023. Retrieved May 22, 2023.
  24. ^ Maryna Konoplyova (June 9, 2023). "Мультфільм «Мавка. Лісова пісня» вийшов у прокат ще у трьох європейських країнах" [The animated film "Mavka. The Forest Song" was released in three European countries]. shotam.info (in Ukrainian). Archived from the original on June 9, 2023. Retrieved June 11, 2023.
  25. ^ Yulia Valova (May 5, 2023). "Ukrainischer Kult-Comic kommt nach Berlin: Alle lieben „Mavka – Hüterin des Waldes"" [Ukrainian cult animated film is coming to Berlin: Everyone loves "Mavka - Guardian of the Forest"]. www.tagesspiegel.de (in German). Archived from the original on May 6, 2023. Retrieved June 11, 2023.
  26. ^ Thegioidienanh.vn (June 20, 2023). "'Mavka: Thần thoại rừng xanh' đến từ Urkaine có mặt trên 50 quốc gia đổ bộ Việt Nam". Thế giới điện ảnh (in Vietnamese). Retrieved June 22, 2023.
  27. ^ Milligan, Mercedes (May 30, 2023). "Ukrainian Folklore Fantasy 'Mavka: The Forest Song' Heads Home with Shout! Kids". Animation Magazine. Retrieved June 2, 2023.
  28. ^ "Mavka: The Forest Song (English Version)". Vue Cinemas. Retrieved July 28, 2023.
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