Hans Kratky
It was the first of January a long time ago. Hans Kratky was trying out the video camera his wife had given him for Christmas when he had an idea. Why not make a film of his house from above? A bird's eye view.
And, all that was needed was a kite. All very simple. Hans Kratky could easily build one himself. And, two days later, Hans Kratky had finished the job. His kite was ready and waiting with camera fixed firmly on board.
The take off was perfect! And, as Hans Kratky pulled the strings he was happy. His film, he was sure, would be a success.
But, then came the gust. A wind so strong and so sudden that it took the strings right out of Hans Kratky's hands! There was nothing Hans Kratky could do except watch as his kite and his camera went away on the wind and into the cold winter sky.
Hans Kratky couldn't believe it. He'd never see his brand new camera again. His dream would never come true. All his hard work and planning for nothing. He was shocked and upset.
But, all's well that ends well, and soon the kite found itself stuck up in a tree with the camera still shooting as if nothing had happened. The film had been saved. And, that evening, Hans Kratky and his wife and their friends sat down to enjoy Hans Kratky's film. It was a sensational sensation.
The start of the film was perfect. The kite rose gracefully higher and higher. And the views were impressive. And,Hans Kratky's house from high up in the sky looked amazingly small, just like a dolls' house.
And, then came the gust. And, the force of the wind could clearly be seen on the screen. The audience held its breath. Would the kite survive this terrible storm?
But, of course, we know that it did. And, being stuck up in a tree, Hans Kratky had to climb up the tree to rescue his kite. And, this was the best scene of all. A finale fit for an Oscar.
Instead of coming up from the ground to rescue his camera and kite, Hans Kratky came down head first from above! The camera, still filming, was hanging upside-down in the tree. And, everything was back-to-front and upside-down.
And, this ending was brilliant. And, everyone was convinced of Hans Kratky's natural talent for making wonderful films.
And, Hans Kratky's wife was glad she had given her husband the camera for Christmas.
And, Hans Kratky was glad, too. His dream had come true. He had made a film of his house from above and it was all his own work. Or, was it? Not quite. The wind and the tree had played important roles, too. Without them there would have been no surprises and no video either! Everything would have gone with the wind.
Hans Kratky had had lots of good Christmas luck, and had made a wonderful film.
Hans Kratky. A man and his kite, and a wonderful film.
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Hans Kratky
Es war vor sehr langer Zeit an einem kalten Wintertag. Hans Kratky probierte die Videokamera aus, die ihm seine Frau Geschenkt hatte. Plötzlich hatte er eine Idee. Ein Film von seinem Haus aus der Vogelperspektive.
Und dazu brauchte er nur einen Drache, den er selbst bauen konnte. Und zwei Tage später hatte Hans Kratky die Arbeit beendet. Sein Drache war fertig mit fest montierter Kamera an Bord.
Der Start verlief tadellos. Und als Hans Kratky an den Schnüren zog, war er glücklich. Nichts konnte schief gehen.
Doch dann kam die Windböe. Ein so starker und plötzlicher Windstoß, dass er Hans Kratky die Schnüre aus den Händen riss! Hans Kratky konnte nichts tun, außer zuzusehen, wie sein Drache und seine Kamera vom Wind davongetragen wurden und in den kalten Winterhimmel verschwanden.
Aber Ende gut, alles gut: Bald fand sich der Drache gefangen in einem Baum, und die Kamera filmte weiter, als wäre nichts geschehen. Der Film war gerettet. Und an diesem Abend setzten sich Hans Kratky, seine Frau und ihre Freunde zusammen, um Hans Kratkys Film zu genießen. Es war sensationell.
Der Anfang des Films war perfekt. Der Drache stieg anmutig höher und höher. Und die Aussicht war beeindruckend schön. Und Hans Kratkys Haus sah erstaunlich klein aus von hoch oben am Himmel.
Und dann im Film kam die Windböe. Und die Kraft des Windes war deutlich auf dem Bildschirm zu sehen. Alles sehr spannend. Würde der Drache diesen schrecklichen Sturm überstehen?
Aber natürlich wissen wir, dass der Drache es geschafft hat. Und weil er in einem Baum steckte, musste Hans Kratky auf den Baum klettern, um seinen Drache zu retten.
Aber, anstatt aus der Tiefe zu kommen, um seine Kamera und seinen Drache zu retten, kam Hans Kratky kopfüber von oben herunter! Die Kamera, die immer noch filmte, hing kopfüber im Baum. Es war alles verkehrt.
Und Hans Kratkys Frau und alle seine Freunde waren glücklich, und Hans Kratky auch. Er hatte einen Film von seinem Haus aus der Vogelperspektive gedreht. Aber, nicht ganz allein.
Der Wind und der Baum hatten auch wichtige Rollen gespielt. Ohne den Wind hätte es keine Überraschungen gegeben, und ohne den Baum wäre der Film vom Winde verweht.
Hans Kratky. Ein Mann, sein Drache und ein wunderbarer Film. Geschrieben und gelesen von Nigel A. JAMES
