Time Masters

On the desert planet Perdide, a crash and an attack by giant hornets leave seven-year-old Piel alone with little more than a radio set his dying father gave him. The boy treats the device as a companion and uses it to reach Jaffar, an old friend of his father who is travelling through space with a small crew. Jaffar answers the call and turns his ship toward Perdide, staying in contact with Piel while the journey stretches on. Among those aboard are the renegade Prince Matton and his companion Belle, and the old spacefarer Silbad, who claims knowledge of Perdide. The voyage is not straightforward, and the travellers find that others take an interest in the planet as well.

René Laloux directed Time Masters, released in 1982, between Fantastic Planet in 1973 and Gandahar in 1987. He wrote the screenplay with the artist Jean Giraud. The voice cast includes Jean Valmont as Jaffar, Michel Elias as Silbad, Frédéric Legros as Piel, Yves-Marie Maurin as Matton, Monique Thierry as Belle and Sady Rebbot as Claude, with 43 crew members credited. The film runs 80 minutes and was a co-production involving France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Hungary and Switzerland.

Reception on IMDb and TMDB is consistent, with a rating of 7.3 out of 10 on both, from around 7,400 votes on IMDb and 198 on TMDB, indicating a well-regarded title with a modest but loyal audience.