Czech director Zdeněk Troška (72) admitted that the tale The Devil’s Bride from 2011 is among his most popular, despite the fact that its production was accompanied by many problems. Since the story is full of effects and demanding scenes, the finances were spent very quickly and the original budget was not enough. So he decided to take a little risk. He put 5 million crowns into the film from his own pocket, and the fairy tale became a box office hit.
Even the weather did not play into the hands of the filmmakers. For the three-month filming, they chose locations through which strong storms and floods passed at that time. One tidal wave even took away their sets, so the crew had to improvise and build the scenes anew.
Even the actors themselves did not avoid difficulties. A wasp flew into Sabine Laurin’s (53) costume and stung her several times. The locations immediately swelled and a halt to the shoot was considered. Despite the pain, the actress finished the scene. Insects did not spare the protagonist either. “We waited for the sun for about 45 minutes, then it came out for 30 seconds and disappeared again. In the meantime, hornets nested behind me and threatened me while filming,” complained for the actor Václav Šanda (36).
The fairy tale eventually enjoyed great success and for the young Eva Podzimková (35), it was the first big task at the time. But the director did not doubt her. “I saw her in the photo and it was clear to me immediately: ‘That’s her! Long hair, big black eyes, a real devil’s girl,'” added Troška. However, her fairy-tale partner struggled a bit during filming and they had to overdub him.
“It was his first time in front of the camera and he was a little nervous. He ended up being dubbed by a professional actor, that’s sometimes done when the actor is interesting, but vocally not quite ideal.” finished the favorite director.
