One Rat Short USA A subway rat finds himself in an amazing adventure of love and loss on a dark Manhattan night. The award winning animation was written and directed by Alex Weil (the same man who directed the classic Cars music video You Might Think). – Watch the film again, below.
The Cathedral Poland An explorer discovers what appear to be the ruins of an ancient cathedral on the edge of an abyss. His journey at an end, he stands and waits for transformation. Tomek Baginski’s Academy award nominated film is based on the Jacek Dukaj science fiction novel.
Mirage South Korea/USA A bio-mechanic robot must fill his glass chest with water to stay alive. When his survival depends on the possible death of another, he uses his ingenuity to solve the problem. The stunning animation won a Student Academy Award for filmmaker Youngwoong Jang and took two years to complete.
Milo 55160 Canada Milo knows eternity is a long time to wait for a promotion. Milo is Heaven’s loneliest bureaucrat who spends everyday the same as the day before — processing disoriented and angry “newly-deads.” One day he meets an unusual boy, a “near dead” boy named Will, who is between both worlds. When Will mysteriously disappears, Milo is forced to leave his office desk and embark on a purgatorial odyssey through the afterlife. What he discovers drastically changes his life, literally, forever. Written and directed by David Ostry. Principal cast: Patrick McKenna, Alec Stockwell, Mark Caven, Graham Kartna, and Anne Tager Page.
Dad’s Clock Australia An elaborate and imaginative animation based on a father’s quest to build a clock before he dies of cancer and of a son’s attempts to reconcile their distant relationship. Written and directed by Dik Jarman, who is also an architect (in addition to being a puppet maker), spent two years making this film. The film is made even more personal by the inclusion of objects owned by his father — for example, a compass is used to as the bird’s beak.
Monster
Australia
A young single mother struggles with her son’s fear of a monster lurking in the house. She feels he has an over active imagination until one night she spies something deep in the corner of the closet. Written and directed by Jennifer Kent. Principal cast: Susan Prior (who also stars in the Imagemakers short The Saviour), Luke Ikimis-Healy and Trash Vaudeville.
– Watch the film again, below.
Smile
Israel
Yuval goes over to his friend’s apartment unsuspecting that he has been set up on a blind date. Something just doesn’t feel right. The warning signs keep reappearing to a point where paranoia takes over. A very creepy short combining people in live action with CGI heads. Written, directed and animated by Noam Abta and Yuval Abramovich. Principal cast: Yuval Segev, Yaara Gotlib, Adar Parnas and Michal Fish.
– Watch the film again, below.
Jona/Tomberry
Holland
No, not scared, yeah, right! Welcome to the twisted, hallucinatory and nightmarish subconscious mind of the one of a kind animator Rosto. The short film blends various techniques and narrative approaches to explore notions of reflection and repetition; opposites and duplicates; doppelgangers and alter egos. The short has won numerous awards including the Grand Prize at Cannes in 2005. The music is performed by Rosto’s band “The Wreckers.”
– Watch the film again, below.
– To learn more about the film, go to jonatomberry.com.
One Day A Man Bought A House Norway It’s the same old love story you’ve heard a thousand times before. A man and a rat meet and fall in love — hey, wait a minute! Obviously, love works in mysterious ways. Written and directed by Pjotr Sapegin. Pjotr was born in Russia and worked as a stage designer for 15 years at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow before working in animation. – Watch the film again, below. – To learn more about this award winning animator, go to awn.com.
Pib and Pog England Pib and Pog, two comic characters bring a whole new meaning to mischief, as their harmless pranks quickly escalate into behavior featuring acid, a reciprocating saw and a submachine gun. This is definitely not your normal Saturday morning cartoon. It’s more like Tom and Jerry on acid. Written and directed by Peter Peake from Aardman Animation, the same company responsible for Wallace & Gromit and the feature Chicken Run. – Watch the film again, below.
The Orchid and The Rose Canada A beautiful red rose’s heart takes flight when a radiant orchid starts to bloom in the same window box. A sexy courtship ensues. The only thing standing in their way is an annoying bee. Directed and produced by Mark Benard and Dennis Tal. The hypnotic music is performed by the band Hinterland. – Watch the film again, below.
Delivery Germany An old man lives a lonely life under the dark shadows of industrial smog. One day he receives a mysterious package, which gives him the ability to change his environment. The award winning short was written and stunningly animated by student filmmaker Till Nowak. – Watch the film again, below. – To learn more about the film, go to delivery.framebox.de.
The Legend of the Scarecrow Spain A scarecrow wonders why the birds that constantly cross his path refuse to befriend him. When a blind bird accidentally falls into his field and tells him the reason why, the scarecrow decides to change his life. He takes fate into his own hands but pays a high price for freedom. The award winning animation is directed and written by NYU film graduate Marco Besas. The style of the film is an affectionate tribute to the work of Tim Burton and is based on a Spanish folk tale. Narrated by Sancho Gracia. – Watch the film again, below.
Ryan Canada There is a thin line between genius and madness. Pioneering animator Ryan Larkin produced some of the most influential animated films of his time, yet now he fights an alcohol problem. Reduced to begging on the downtown streets in Montreal, he is now an artist who is no longer able to create. The 2005 Academy Award winning short combines breathtaking and surrealist animation with the documentary form to create a one of a kind film. Director Chris Landreth went into animation as a second career after a stint as an engineer with a master’s degree in theoretical and applied mechanics. – Watch the film again, below.
