The King And The Mockingbird - Trailer

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The bitter and heartless king of Takicardia, Charles V + III = VIII + VIII = XVI, is in love with the painting of a young and beautiful shepherdess that he hangs on his wall. Unfortunately for him, the shepherdess is in love with a chimney sweep, immortalised in another painting in the palace. One night, while he's asleep, the pictures come to life and try to run away together. But when a portrait of the king comes to life and deposed the real king, he commands the palace guards to stop the chimney sweep and shepherdess from escaping.

'Le Roi et l'oiseau' or 'The King and the Mockingbird' was originally made to be France's first feature animation film, and production began in 1948. The production was suddenly cancelled, however, and the film was not finished until French animation director Paul Grimault acquired the rights to the film over the course of the 1960s and 1970s. While an unfinished version of the film was released in 1952, Grimault's reconstructed and finished film was released in 1980. An English version of the film never truly existed until the film was remastered in 2013, with the final, English-dubbed film being released in New York on 21st November, before being released across the US.