One Man

When a girl is in peril only one man can save her! This is an animated short for any of you who have sat watching a superhero movie rolling your eyes and thinking what a complete narcissistic waste of space the guy at the center of the action is – especially the way that he takes forever to save the damsel in distress.

Not only that, but while he is taking forever to save her, his heroics in the pursuit of glory seem to be a device in place simply to sate the need to cram as many explosions and crashes in the movie as possible.

The direction, story and CG Art of One Man is by Graciliano Camargo who developed this short for his final project at Méliès School of Cinema, 3D and Animation.

Beyond the Dust

This animated short directed by students at ESMA tells the story of two distinctly different robots who have the unenviable job of cleaning and maintaining an abandoned home.  As the dust piles up, they both begin to be aware of the possibility of a life beyond it, but any attempt to leave the mundanity of their existence is quickly halted by their all-seeing supervisor.  It comes to a head when the smaller of the two robots accidentally turns on the TV and watches a nature documentary. Will they ever get to experience what lies beyond the dust?

This very touching science-fiction animated short is nothing short of brilliant.  I’ve said this time and time again about ESMA graduation work – it is so very difficult to distinguish their work from the professionally created shorts that one can only imagine a very rewarding future ahead of  them in the animation industry.  The characters of our two protagonists come across very well through their actions right from the start – and this is what really makes the short work (and is very difficult to pull off in something without dialogue even when your characters are human, let alone animated robots).

There are tropes at work, to be sure, but that is very nearly always the case in very nearly all works of science fiction these days.  I have to say that this would fit right in as an episode in the LOVE DEATH + ROBOTS series on Netflix (I think it’s superior to some of the works shown there, I have to say).  So, congratulations to all involved, especially the directors Alexia Ameline, , Marin Benitez, Lucien-Paul Bigey, Marine DuPot, Benjamin Hack, Matteo Michel, Salomé Quillien and Juliette Vignollet.

Monster's Symphony

 
In German, Monstersinfonie, this wonderful animated short by Kiana Naghshineh tells the story of a little girl who has a job – to train the monsters in her life to make the sort of noises that are going to properly frighten people.  Altogether, she does a pretty good job.  This short was created during Naghshineh’s time at the Filmakademie Baden-Wuerttemberg in Germany.  Believe it or not it was created and produced in just three weeks.  Watch the film below. Emjoy!

Song of the Knight

Once upon a time there was a knight who owned the most irritating magical sword in the world – it just wouldn’t stop singing!

However, there might just come a time when this infuriating habit has its advantages. 

Song of the Knight was created by Steven Ray at the Ringling College of Art and Design.

Everything You Always Wanted to Know about DNA but were Too Overawed to Ask

DNA is a complex subject.  Yet if you ever wanted to have all the important facts about DNA squished in to three minutes, then look no further.  This animated short by Territory Studio takes a look at the history, biology and concerns around DNA.  Reminiscent of textbook diagrams and old science documentaries, this will enable you to understand not only DNA’s form and function but how our understanding of these discoveries has affected the wider world.

I Met the Walrus

John Lennon's death in 1980 remains for many a pivotal moment in their lives. For a certain generation they remember where they were when he was shot rather than, say, the JFK memories of an older generation.

Jerry Levitan was 14 in 1969 and somewhat braver than your average teenager. He managed to sneak in to the hotel in which Lennon was staying armed with his tape recorder (remember those big heavy almost suitcase sized ones?). This is the film of that moment in time - with the interview illuminated by a visual narrative, produced by the grown up Levitan in 2007. We think that Lennon would have approved.

At the time Lennon was working through his notorious 'bed in' stage where he and Yoko Ono took to their bed and maintained they would stay there until world peace had broken out. He was also having continuous trouble with US immigration policy and this is refleced in the film, directed by Josh Raskin.

The message is both caught in time and timeless - the marriage of the wonderful pen work of James Braithwaite with the digital illustrations of Alex Kurina come together in a magical way. Even if you are not a huge fan of Lennon you may want to watch this to the end just to see how many ways in which his words can be ingeniously animated. 

The movie was nominated for Best Animated Short Film in 2008 and while it didn't bag the Oscar it did receive many other prizes - which is not surprising.

Out of a Forest

At certain times of the year families get together, sit around a table and eat and talk. Such is the case with this extended family of rabbits but there is danger lurking in the background…

This is Tobias Gundorff Boesen’s Bachelor film from The Animation Workshop. It is set to the song "Slow Show" by The National, who were kind enough to allow him to use their music (well it makes for a very memorable promo after all!). It is a non-commercial short film, intended for festivals – and it has won many!.

It was shot in the forests surrounding Viborg, Denmark. Boesen’s main inspiration was Victorian literature, and "Boxer" by The National. It was painful to finish, as shooting stop motion in the forest at night for longer periods turned out to offer a lot of problems. I think (or hope!) that you will agree that is was worth all the effort.  Plus I love the surprise ending!

Kayak

This very funny animated short features possibly the most irresponsible father in the world – so you will have to suspend your disbelief (hey, it’s an animation, that’s normal).  When in need of something to do with his infant child to pass the day, this dad decides that kayaking would be a marvellous idea.  Chaos ensues – and when you add an eagle in to the mix, then anything could happen.  This was made by a group of very talented French students from Ecole des Nouvelles Images as their graduation work – simply fantastic!

The Laws of Motion - Animated!

Back in 1687 Newton first published the three laws of motion.  They describe the relationship between the forces acting on a body and its motion due to those forces. They have been expressed in many different ways over nearly three centuries, so here is yet another way of doing so – in animated form. I for one reckon that Newton would approve!

This is the work of Lindsay Gilmour, who was responsible for the visual development of this film from concept to final render. I really like the clean lines of the animation and the interpolation of the human hand in to the action to show us which law is being described.  Of course, when the heroes of the story are Earl the Brick and Freddy the Feather (sound like London gangsters of the 1960s!) it is even more marvelous! Science and art in tandem again!

Isaac Newton's Entire Life in 90 Seconds

If you need to know a lot about the life of Isaac Newton but have very little time, how does 90 seconds grab you?  Of course, Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica takes up a large part of this animation by Kevin Orzel as it takes almost 90 seconds to say it.

However, it is a brief but accurate insight in to one of the great geniuses of the Scientific Revolution who I always think of as a kind of Seventeenth Century Sheldon Cooper who, unfortunately for him, never quite found his own Leonard Hofstadter.

Stanley Pickle

Stanley’s life works like clockwork – literally.  He lives within his own self-contained world but everything changes when he spots a girl from his bedroom window.  This charming stop motion short movie is something of a bittersweet tale – one of loneliness, isolation and, finally, freedom.  I am sure that the end will put a smile on the most cynical of faces but I still have to wonder how Stanley’s life came to be as it was in the first place!

Stanley Pickle was shot entirely on a stills camera on 2 sets and 2 locations. The film premièred on to the festival circuit in June 2010 at the Edinburgh International Film Festival, where it picked up the McLaren Award for New British Animation, followed by Oscar qualification at the US première LA Shorts where the film won Best Experimental.  It was directed by Victoria Mather and stars Drew Caiden who surely has the most expressive face on film since Jim Carey.

What is Nanoscience? (Narrated by Stephen Fry)

You may well ask. However, if you have ever wanted a great introduction to nanoscience and nanotechnology you can’t go wrong with NanoYou, a short documentary narrated by Steven Fry.

The film was mainly shot at and with the assistance of the Nanoscience Centre at the University of Cambridge and features researchers involved in exploring the world of Nano.

The Poor Little Match Boy

Once upon a Christmas time there was a poor little match boy.  To make his miserable life a little more bearable the poor boy began to light his remaining few matches. When they were lit he seemed to be able to hear the sounds of Christmas...

Sounds miserable?

Then take a look at this video by David Lea and it will give you, we hope, an alternative Christmas chuckle! But watch out for the snowm..... aaaarghh!

Firekites - Autumn Story

This is clever: a chalk board animation in the round.  Created for the Firekites (a band from Newcastle, Australia) this animation by Photoplay Films is possibly inspired by the South African animator William Kentridge but it stands up very well on its own.

I particularly liked the transition from one board to another, particularly the cat which grows larger as it does so.  I am not an expert in these things but that must have been very difficult to do.

The film is made up of approximately roughly 1900 frames with the frame rate varying between 12fps, 8fps and 6fps throughout. Considering the delicacy of the technique employed the drawings are incredibly (almost unfeasibly) stable.  The only thing missing really is the chalk animation coming off the board - now that would have been something (but even suggesting it seems a little churlish considering how beautifully this is done).

Antelope Richards

The Richards are a lovely couple and everyone is so happy when they finally conceive.  Yet the child they produce is an… antelope.  Still, never let anything hold you back, and this young buck certainly doesn’t.  Quirky, funny and just a tad surreal, Antelope Richards is a highly improbable story about some highly unlikely things. It was created by Gary Ye during his time at Sheridan College.

Warsaw – City of Ruins

Digital technology has allowed us to play all sorts of tricks on the imagination – the cityscape surrounding Will Smith in I Am Legend is just one example of how the appearance of a city can be changed to appear as it would after a force of total malevolence had wreaked its damage.

Yet many people throughout history had no need of FX trickery to experience apocalypse and that was certainly the case for the people of Warsaw after the Second World War.  Previously one of the most beautiful cities in Europe, a place full of life and culture, the city was all but destroyed by the time hostilities ceased in 1945, its population more than decimated and its buildings and streets in complete ruin.

Yet in some ways black and white photography and grainy film footage can lose its impact over the decades, particularly for young people for whom there is no immediate memory of the carnage.  With that in mind Warsaw Rising Museum has commissioned this remarkable digital reconstruction of the Warsaw as it was after the war - City of Ruins.

The Polish capital is the first city to undergo this kind of digital recreation to show what it had been reduced to only a lifetime ago.  A team of thirty graphic artists contributed for two years to create this five minute reconstruction and Platige Image acted as Producer.

Following the flight path of a US Liberator over the ravaged city this elegant piece of digital art is somehow disquieting and calming at the same time.  It gives us a full picture of just how the city looked in its entirety (if that is the right word for these remnants of cosmopolitan life) and the work that its population had ahead of them in order to raise the city from the ruins.

The Visual Effects Society has recently announced the nominations for their prestigious VES Award for the best special effects in film, television, commercials and games. City of Ruins has been nominated for Outstanding Visual Effects in the Special Venue Project category.

The Warsaw Rising Museum will be presenting the film from 1 August and its Director, Jan Ołdakowski, would be delighted if you could come to the museum and watch the film.

Sketchi

Anyone who has ever owned a dog will tell you how much they loved the little critter.  This little girl and her dog, Sketchi, are inseparable but her canine companion is old and it is time for him to go to the dog kennel in the sky.

Yet the little girl has other ideas and goes to drastic lengths to try and revive her pet.

This is a sad and funny animated short by Lily Sun. It is sad without being maudlin and funny without being cruel – which is a difficult job to get right. Wonderful work, Lily!

Arrival: A Short and Very Sweet Coming Out Film

It’s 2023 and so, surely, no one needs to fear coming out as LGBTQ anymore?

If that’s the case then no one told the Chechen authorities who seem, currently, to be paving the way towards a new dark-age for those who do not identify as hetero.

Rare was the person, ever, who was able to spring blithely and fully-formed from the metaphorical closet but in many countries it is still almost impossible to do so without some form of repudiation, denunciation or reprobation.

So this short film, for me, was something of a breath of fresh air. Arrival tells the story of a young man who has a close bond with his mother.  Yet when he moves to the big city and not only discovers himself but also the love of his life, he is unable to share this amazing happening with his mother.  To see how this is resolved you will have to watch this beautifully made animated short film, written, directed and animated by Alex Myung.

Even today, in the most liberal of societies with the most liberal of parents, people still struggle to share their true nature with their loved ones leading to a ripple effect which makes everyone unhappy.  You could see this short two ways: first it is super-contemporary and very political. It is, after all, societal structure and its dictat that to be ‘normal’ is to fit in which makes so many young LGBTQ people unhappy and as such this is a plea for change and for enlightenment.

At the same time this is also (and predominantly) a very, very sweet story about the relationship between a mother and son and how, ultimately, their bond overcomes the obstacles that the social order puts in its way.

Cicada Princess

This very lovely animation tells the story of the cicada – under the earth for sixteen years and then, briefly, winged and abroad.

Yet you won’t find David Attenborough narrating this – instead it’s the lovely Steven Fry who lends his dulcet tones to tell us this charming tale.

Sit back and enjoy.  This is wonderful.

243 Titles of Animated Feature Films

If you love animated movies then this is going to be an absolute treat for you.  Put together for the first (and probably last) time are 243 titles of animated movies.  Just the titles, one after the other – so blink and you will miss them.

This uber cool compilation was put together by Irina Neustroeva – and if you want to see the whole list, click here.