2025
9 Million Colors
Synopsis
"9 Million Colors" is a unique 15-minute stop-motion musical set in a vibrant underwater world. The film celebrates an unlikely friendship in a somewhat morbid way, creating a distinctive tone and visual style. At its core, the story addresses an important theme - accepting others and yourself despite differences - aimed at connecting with children and young audiences.
The film is directed by talented Czech filmmaker Bára Anna Stejskalová, whose previous stop-motion work has gained international recognition. Her unique approach to animation and storytelling brings this underwater world to life through careful craftsmanship and attention to detail.
Unlike many animated films, "9 Million Colors" tells its story without dialogue, using music and visuals to convey its narrative. This approach creates an immersive musical experience that showcases the distinctive underwater setting and characters while allowing the film to connect with audiences regardless of language barriers.
Mission
The film "9 Million Colors" seeks to address the universal theme of acceptance through the artistic medium of stop-motion animation, creating a visually striking underwater world where differences are celebrated rather than feared. By presenting its message through a musical format without dialogue, the film aims to transcend language barriers and connect with children and young audiences on an emotional level that words alone cannot achieve.
Through its portrayal of an unlikely friendship developed in unexpected ways, the film endeavors to demonstrate that genuine connections can form between vastly different individuals, challenging viewers to reconsider preconceptions about those who appear different from themselves. The deliberately morbid undertone serves not to frighten but to add depth and complexity to a message that might otherwise feel overly simplistic.
By bringing together artistic talents from four different countries, the project itself embodies the collaborative spirit it promotes on screen, demonstrating how diverse perspectives can enhance creative work. The film ultimately strives to provide young audiences with an artistic experience that plants seeds of empathy and self-acceptance, using the fantastical underwater setting to explore very real human emotions and social dynamics in a way that is both accessible and profound.
About the film
"9 Million Colors" is a 15-minute stop-motion musical film created as a Czech-French-Norwegian-Slovak co-production. Set in a vibrant underwater world, the film explores the theme of accepting oneself and others despite differences, through a story of an unlikely friendship presented with a somewhat morbid twist.
The project is directed by Bára Anna Stejskalová, a talented Czech filmmaker with a master's degree from FAMU. Her previous stop-motion work "Love Is Just a Death Away" (2020) was BAFTA-shortlisted and screened at prestigious festivals including SXSW and Palm Springs. She has also worked on the animated VR film "Darkening" (2022), which premiered at Venice Film Festival and was nominated for a Czech Film Award.
The film is produced by Czech company Bionaut, with co-production partners from France (Foliascope), Norway (Trollfilm), and Slovakia. Trollfilm, the Norwegian co-producer, is responsible for all sound post-production aspects of the film. The company has been producing award-winning stop-motion short films for children since 1995 and is owned by Oscar member Anita Killi, a respected name in international animation circles.
The film has already secured distribution through the French distributor Miyu Distribution, known for successfully distributing short films globally and having multiple Oscar nominations and awards from major festivals. With no dialogue, relying instead on music and visuals to tell its story, "9 Million Colors" is designed to reach international audiences without language barriers.
Project team