Zlín Film Studios Celebrating 90 Years Since Their Founding

24. March 2026

The upcoming 66th edition of the festival will focus, among other themes, on celebrating the 90th anniversary of the founding of the Zlín film studios. In a unique series of talks titled “Zlín Film Pioneers,” we will connect their renowned history in animation, advertising, and special effects filmmaking with the work of today’s filmmakers. Each early evening in the ZLINFEST ZONE near the Zlín Chateau, we will present how the craft of filmmaking has evolved over time. Audiences can look forward to archival footage as well as works by our guests, who continue to develop these genres today.

The talks will be immediately followed by evening film loops in Komenský Park. On a large outdoor screen, audiences will be able to enjoy everything from the very first puppet version of Ferda the Ant to other special-effects masterpieces from the Zlín studios.

Before this year’s festival begins, however, let us take a journey into the history of the Zlín film studios in Kudlov, which is a fascinating story of how a purely practical initiative by a shoe-making empire gave rise to a global centre of imagination and animation.

Did you know that it all began in the mid-1930s, when Tomáš Baťa, followed by Jan Antonín Baťa, recognized the enormous potential of film for advertising and promoting their products?

The Baťa Foundations and Hollywood on the Hill

In 1936, the first studio building was constructed in the then-independent municipality of Kudlov. Architect Vladimír Karfík brilliantly applied the typical Zlín factory modular system (6.15 × 6.15 m), drawing on experience he had gained directly in the American film capital, Hollywood. Thanks to the efficiency of Baťa’s construction methods, the first studio was completed in just nine months. On a quiet hill above Zlín, history began to unfold in style. The first film clapperboard marked the start of filming for a commercial for rubber galoshes (Autumn Caprices, August 1936).

At that time, figures who would come to shape Czech cinema came to Zlín, including director Elmar Klos, producer Ladislav Kolda, and visionary cinematographer Alexander Hackenschmied. From the outset, the studios were equipped to a high standard and included their own film laboratories, making them a self-sufficient hub of film production.

The Golden Age of Animation and Special Effects

The post-war period transformed Kudlov into a place full of imagination. Although the Zlín studio did not possess the same financial and technical resources as the major Prague film centres, this relative modesty often encouraged ingenuity, experimentation, and the search for original approaches. The local environment became a natural laboratory for new methods and bold solutions.

This was not merely the work of a few prominent individuals, but of a broad circle of creators who together formed the distinctive of Zlín filmmaking phenomenon.

Karel Zeman

In his films, he combined live-action with animation and special effects, creating inventive works that expanded the possibilities of cinematic storytelling. Films such as Journey to the Beginning of Time and The Fabulous World of Jules Verne achieved significant international acclaim, received numerous awards, and brought global attention to Czech cinema. His work continues to inspire admiration for its imagination and sophisticated use of film techniques.

Hermína Týrlová

The creator of the first Czechoslovak stop-animation film, Ferda the Ant. In her films, she brought puppets and everyday objects to life, developing a distinctive poetic style that significantly influenced Czech animation for children and its international reputation.

Josef Pinkava

Thanks to his original profession as a teacher, he understood the world of children with exceptional sensitivity. In his live-action films, he worked with child actors with a naturalness and empathy rooted in his pedagogical experience. His films were recognized at international festivals and became notable works within Czech cinema for children and youth.

Jiří Hanzelka and Miroslav Zikmund

Within the Zlín studio’s productions, they created travel reports and documentary films from Africa, Latin America, and Asia. Through the medium of film, they introduced domestic audiences to distant continents and cultures, broadening Czech viewers’ awareness of the world beyond their everyday experience.

In 1961, the studios underwent modernization, and in the same year, the International Film Festival for Children and Youth was held in Zlín for the first time. Today, it is the oldest and largest event of its kind in the world.

The Present and a Living Legacy

After 1989, Czech cinema underwent a fundamental transformation. With the advent of a market economy, the centralized system of state funding and management of film production disappeared, and film studios were privatized. The Zlín studios also changed their legal and ownership structure, yet their creative continuity was not interrupted. Private companies built upon its long-standing tradition and continue to actively develop and sustain it to this day.

Today, the ten-building complex is a unique site where film history naturally meets modern audiovisual production. The premises are also home to FILMFEST, the organizer of the Zlín Film Festival, and visitors can explore the Film History Cabinet, which is a permanent exhibition mapping the history of Zlín and Czech cinema.