A Chinese emperor prefers the tinkling of a bejeweled mechanical bird to the song of a real nightingale. When the Emperor is near death, a nightingale's song restores his health and teaches him to revolt against his glittering but shallow world.—.

One of Jirí Trnka's full-length pictures, it is based upon Hans Christian Andersen's fairy-tale. It is a story of a Chinese emperor that, because of a beautiful toy-nightingale, forgets about the song of a real, live nightingale that comforted him in his solitude. Trnka unconditionally backs the live art's side. The picture has strong ethical components, and it has been admired by many. It is also famous for the extraordinary music composed by Václav Trojan.—KrátkýFilm