The King and the Mockingbird

In French with English subtitles
Dir. Paul Grimault, France, 1980, DCP, 81 min

“The most swooning and elegant hand-drawn animation masterpiece to climax with a giant robot attack.” – Alan Scherstuhl, The Village Voice

Based on Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tale “The Shepherdess and the Chimney Sweep,” The King and the Mockingbird follows two young protagonists as they flee the clutches of a tyrannical king. Aided by an insolent mockingbird who seeks revenge for the monarch’s cruelty, the shepherdess and the chimney sweep discover a shadowy underground city. The film, a collaboration between animator Paul Grimault and writer Jacques Prévert, creates a surreal world where fairy-tale castles and labyrinthine passageways give way to stark industrial landscapes with unexpected mechanical inventions.

As France’s first drawn animated feature in color, The King and the Mockingbird has won the admiration of generations of viewers, filmmakers, artists, and illustrators. Beneath its fantastical imagery and sharp satire, the film offers an enduring tale of solidarity in the face of oppression.