Jungle Race: A Blood-Soaked Planet of the Apes Meets Wacky Races

If you cross Planet of the Apes (featuring more simian species than usual) with Wacky Races and get Quentin Tarantino to direct, then I am pretty sure the result would be something like Jungle Race in all its blood and guts brilliance.  It is set at some point in the near future (love the city backdrops, overtaken by nature) where humanity has disappeared, leaving behind the ruins and a few parting gifts -cars that still work is the one the monkeys most prize (and there are even some motorbikes too).  There’s even a little homage to Herbie inside here – the Volkswagen one chimp character is driving has the number 53 painted on its rear (yay!).

This is gloriously gory stuff – please don’t watch it if you are of a delicate disposition.  Its mindless violence is something that will keep you up at night.  On the other hand, Jungle Race is also a fierce satire of our spectacle-driven society, where violence becomes entertainment, driven by an energetic, fast-paced edit, colourful art direction and a succession of spectacular action scenes.  Jungle Race was created by ten little monkeys from Brassart Grenoble (I spent a wonderful exchange visit there when I was 15), Nathan Stefen, Thomas Marsaudon, Tristan Forcheron, Justine Perrin, Loïc Noailhat, Charles Lardenois, Cyprien Cotton, Ezvin Manhes, Quentin Steinhilber, and Camille Tessier. Music is by Rémi Dutriez and Axel Leclère “Dogma”, with sound design by Coline ColombeT, Dan Ravot, and Benjamin Macé.

Fluff and Furious Animated Short: A Hilarious Tale of a Poodle Who Wants to be a Wolf

Fluffy is a poodle and like many other dogs his size, tends to get ideas above his station!  I guess it’s something that dog owners come across regularly – and where our canine companions get these ideas from is anyone’s guess.  Except, in this case, Fluffy’s owner makes the mistake of having a snooze in the middle of a nature documentary about wolves.  This is when Fluffy makes the awesome discovery that he is a descendant of these wild, majestic animals – and so decided to reclaim his history and act like a wolf.  This is a charming animated short, full of moments that dog owners everywhere will acknowledge with a knowing nod (and probably a chuckle, too).

Fluff and Furious was developed and directed by Joey Liao, who created the animated short for his degree thesis.  It has its roots firmly planted in the animations that those of us of a certain age used to watch when we were kids!  Watch and enjoy Fluff and Furious below.

Samurai Frog Golf: The Brilliant Animated Short That Deserves a Series - サムライフロッグゴルフ

Here’s a plea – will someone who knows someone who sleeps with someone who works with someone who can fund an animated series, please put the relevant person or persons in front of Samurai Frog Golf.  I have no idea why this awesome piece of animation hasn’t garnered millions of hits, but I guess I would have to ask The Algorithm and it’s currently not speaking to me.  Regardless, this short by Marza Animation Planet deserves a much larger audience than it got a few years ago.  It tells the story of a grizzled old Samurai Frog, who after years of battle just wants to be left alone to enjoy his golf.  What drew me in was the gorgeous animation - such a great deal of time and effort has been put into making this short.

Fate, of course, would have otherwise – and he soon finds himself the protector of a baby turtle. There is nothing for him to do but to protect the innocent, but the only thing he could use as a weapon is his golf club… I will leave the rest to you to watch.  I thoroughly enjoyed this and I hope that Marza is still looking for coproduction partners to continue the story of Samurai Frog Golf in a series!  To give up on this brilliant idea would be such a shame…

Temptation – Will Dave the Bungling Bear Get his Tasty Treats?

Meet Dave. Dave is a bear.  And he is hungry – always hungry.  And there is candy and other sweet treats everywhere.  Of course, in time-honoured toon tradition, he must have a nemesis who stands in his gluttonous path.  But spare a thought for Dave – he has two, in the shape of compulsive hoarder Roy the Squirrel and Audrey, the “Fearless Leader” of the local scout pack.  Oh dear. Poor Dave.  Will he ever manage to get his furry mitts on the goodies or will Roy and Audrey forever stand in his way?

He certainly has his work cut out for him, as did the bunch of Rubika students who produced this outstanding (and gleefully violent) animated short. The film was created by Camille Canonne (who came up with the original idea), Laura Bouillet, Michael Hoft, Catherine Le Quang, Pauline Raffin and Martin Villert, with music and sound design by Julien Auclair and Arthur Romain. Voice performances are provided by Arthur Romain, Julien Auclair and Coralie Vallias.  This is a superlative piece of animated glee, especially when you take into account that these are students working on a limited budget.  Fantastic – take a look below.