Thorbjørn Egner forgotten Christmas story becomes Christmas film, Digi Mart USA News (Norway): Animation studio Qvisten has produced a Christmas film based on a radio play written about 80 years ago that few people had heard of. The project began when Qvisten asked Bjørn Egner, son of the beloved children’s author Thorbjørn Egner, whether his father had written anything about Christmas.
Bjørn Egner was not aware that drawings from the radio play existed, but he knew where to start looking. He searched his father’s archive and found unpublished material, including drawings, that he did not know existed.
He said his father may have planned to publish the story as a book.
The radio play, titled Julenissens verksted, was first broadcast on radio in 1946. It became a regular part of the pre-Christmas season until about 1980.
The original play is a meta-story in which a boy and a hallomann from the children’s program Barnetimen try to find Santa Claus’s workshop.
In the film, Mari and her father try to find out whether Santa Claus really exists. Because the radio play is short for a full feature film, the filmmakers added songs by Thorbjørn Egner, including Kaptein Sorte-Bill, Dyrene i Afrika and Det snør, det snør.
Producer Ove Heiborg said the drawings were essential to the film’s visual look, and the team tried to stay as close to them as possible.
Director Rasmus A. Sivertsen and co-director Mette Tange also drew on books about architecture, old reading books and Christmas cards as inspiration.
Producer Ove Heiborg said the finished work is meant to feel distinctly Egner-like. Bjørn Egner said he is pleased that his father’s stories continue in new formats, but he doubts the archive holds other complete works.
