MIAF Day 5: International Program #5, Klasky Csupo Retrospective: The Unseen Pilots

International Program #5

The fifth session of films in competition. My top picks are as follows:

Preferably Blue (Alan Dickson, 2010) – Comedic New Zealand CGI comedy about the Easter Bunny’s vendetta against Santa Claus. Delivered as a poem in the style of Disney Christmas specials, but with the addition of some very adult humour.

The Backwater Gospel (Bo Mathorne, 2011) – Absolutely astounding CGI animation with a graphic novel vibe to it. The film highlights the fear and paranoia of religion in the old West, and the symbolism of “the undertaker”. It feels like a feature film in nine minutes. With haunting visuals, flawless voice acting, and eerie textures creating a gothic atmosphere, this film was my pick for Best of the Festival.

Peacemaker Mac – The Island of Dispute (Yotam Cohen, 2011) – Clever Israeli animation made in the style of silent 1920s Felix the Cat. Not a festival winner but it delivers what it promises: a modern twist on classic humour.

A Life Well-Seasoned (Daniel Rieley, 2011) – Beautiful story of an elderly man, portrayed through 2D pencil animation and stop-motion animation.

 

Klasky Csupo Retrospective: The Unseen Pilots

The once husband and wife duo Arlene Klasky and Gábor Csupó are responsible for producing, animating, and creating some of television’s most iconic and relevant animation. They are the names behind such landmarks as Nickelodeon’s Rugrats and Aaahh!!! Real Monsters, the cult classic Duckman, and the first 61 episodes of a little series known as The Simpsons. But not everything the duo touched turned to gold. This session was a compilation of the unscreened pilots of series that never made it for one reason or another. It truly is unfortunate that some did not evolve any further, and some were never going to see the light of day; though regardless of what became of these pilots, the Melbourne audience loved it. A very tough session to better.

Bench Pressly – A ladies man rebel cop, voiced by Bruce Campbell, with a shrimp sidekick voiced by Tim Curry.  Do I need to say any more?

Junkyard Teddies – A junkyard of defective and faulty toys. Satisfying amount of innocent humour accompanied by slightly altered clichés.

The Way The Dead Live – The obscenity and profanity of this pilot would make South Park blush. It’s no surprise this didn’t make it, but for a select minority of audience members, this is the kind of boundary-pushing, sexually explicit, unique animation you’ve been looking for.

MIAF Day 4: New Japanese Animation #1: Tokyo University of the Arts, International Program #3, International Program #4

New Japanese Animation #1: Tokyo University of the Arts

I’m going to say it right off the mark – this collection of films made the entire festival. This was my original thought leaving the cinema, and after the remaining 3 days of the festival it is still how I continued to feel. I, among many, am a huge fan of Japanese animation. I already had high expectations coming into this session and my expectations were vastly exceeded. The Japanese anime is very popular and rightfully so, but real auteurist Japanese animation needs more attention. These graduate films were chosen for their quality and diversity within the medium. Pencils, ink, paint, CGI, cut-out, puppets, stop-motion; it was all there. I could literally do a full write up on each of these films, but a couple stood out that little bit more; they were:

Bonnie (Masanori Okamoto, 2011) – Beautifully amazing cut-out animation starring Bonnie; a tiny woman made of paper who dances and shape-shifts all over Tokyo.

Specimens of Obsession (Atsushi Makino, 2011) – A metaphoric tale of the torment experienced by a murderer reflecting on his dark deeds. Fear and suspense are communicated through bug metaphors and fast-paced sound.

The Tender March (Wataru Uekusa, 2011) – Definitely the most typically Japanese film of the bunch. We follow a female schoolgirl who walks through the city and surrounding areas, accompanied by cute animals and lively inanimate objects, with a giant monster destroying the city, while an upbeat J-pop song plays.

Island of Man (Alimo, 2011) – Breath taking painted animation with soothing narration. Arguably the best of the session.

Uncapturable Ideas (Masaki Okuda, 2011) – Definitely the most unique film of the session; and being a session full of Japanese films, that is saying a lot! This psychotic painted animation figuratively illustrated the irritation of writer’s block in a way that is simultaneously amusing, absurd, and inventive.

 

International Program #3

The third session of films in competition. My top picks are as follows:

La Détente (Pierre Ducos, Bertrand Bey, 2011) – CGI film displaying the torment of war. The protagonist imagines himself as a child fighting a war in a land made of candy where flowers are ammunition. The cheerful depiction of war exists to juxtapose with its true message: that nothing positive will ever come from war.

Sorceress (Patrick Jenkins, 2011) – A linear supernatural story of two sisters finding themselves in a scary situation involving an evil sorceress that sucks the life out of its victims.

Plume (Barry Purves, 2011) – Larger-than-life, operatic film by British puppet animation master, Barry Purves, about an angel losing his wings.

 

International Program #4

The fourth session of films in competition. My top picks are as follows:

The Eater (Wally Chung, 2010) – Fast-paced and abrupt film involving a man-looking monster the eats everything it encounters.

Bon Voyage (Fabio Friedli, 2011) – Black & white 2D black comedy animation with stick figures on a holiday, though death is a regular occurrence.

Bottle (Kirsten Lepore, 2011) – Gorgeous stop-motion animation about a sand being and a snow being who send each other gifts across the ocean via bottle.

MIAF Day 3 – International Program #8: Abstract Showcase

Word from event organiser, Malcolm Turner, is that MIAF is one of the very few major animation festivals to promote abstract animation, and I tip my hat to him. I have been lucky enough to witness the abstract session three years in a row and it never fails to amaze me. Walking into this session is tantalising because you never know what to expect. There are no rules or criteria to these films; they exist to be out of the ordinary, and those willing to have their mind expanded will thank themselves.

20 Hz (Ruth Jarman, Joe Gerhardt, 2011) – Hypnotising waves and patterns of static. Looks much more appealing than it sounds.

One Second Per Day/ Une Seconde Par Jour (Richard Negre, 2011) – The challenge was set: 1 second of footage, 25 frames per second, for every day of the year. Entertaining from an audience point of view and intriguing from a wannabe-creative point of view in terms of what can be achieved in a set period of time, and how simple and complex one second of film can be.

Strings (Benjamin Ducroz, 2011) – This Australian film has a brilliant flow of colourful vectors to fast-paced music. Miniature film with lasting impact.

Sensology (Michael Gagne, 2010) – This is the kind of film I come to a festival hoping to see. An animated representation of three avant-garde pieces of music. May not be the most original idea but the beauty and pacing of this film is utterly incredible.

MIAF Day 2 – International Program #1; Focus on Belgium #1

REMINDER: The Australian Showcase is Saturday the 23^rd at 4.00pm. Tickets will most likely sell out so make sure you get your ticket secured.

International Program #1

The first twelve assorted films in the running for Best of the Festival. Mostly consisting of European and Asian films, the first international program gave us viewers a good taste of what is to be expected from the films up for the grand prize. What is that expectation? Complete and utter randomness. CGI, scratch, cel, cut-out, stop-motion; it was all there!

Here are my top picks for this screening:

About Killing the Pig/ Dell’ammazare Il Maiale (Simone Massi, 2011) – Very dark charcoal-looking animation with little colour but plenty of style.

My… My (Lei Lei, 2011) Heavily inspired by video games, a man chases a moose-man through a glitch-ridden world.

Auntie Nettle (Svetlana Zueva, 2011) Russian cut-out animation with almost an expressionist look about it. A haunting little film; like the nightmare of The Secret Garden, complete with piercing string music and grotesque visuals. Arguably the best film of the session.

How to Eat Your Apple (Erick Oh, 2011) – Exactly as it sounds, but with a bizarre, humorous twist.

Focus on Belgium #1

Before this session I didn’t even know Belgian animation existed. I’m sure glad I gave it a go. The session consisted of a fine mixture of historic and contemporary Belgian animation. From this collection of films there seems to be a pattern or theme with Belgian animation – as cheerful as a film may seem, it will inevitably have a negative conclusion.

Un Voyage Imprevu (Albert Fromenteau, 1944) – Proof that Disney set the blueprints of animation to the entire world, this film from the 40s resembles the forest setting and singing animals of the American animation powerhouse. The key difference is this film is a little crazier than Disney and didn’t have much of a story to go with it.

Goldframe (Raoul Servais, 1969) – Hilarious tongue-in-cheek film about a filmmaker, Mr. Golframe, who must be the first to produce a film in 270mm. He attempts this by dancing off against his silhouette.

To Speak Or Not To Speak  (Raoul Servais, 1970) – What begins as a humorous piece of social commentary mohps into a straight-faced and blatantly political piece of propaganda.

Compartments Or “I Am Not A Monster” (Hannah Letaif, 2011) – Totally insane animation that grotesquely exaggerates everyday tasks. Will be repeated at the Late Night Bizarre session.

MIAF 2012

And it’s here once again: the spine-tingling, mind-blowing, death-defying, break-neck, out-of-this-world event of Melbourne’s cinema scene – the Melbourne International Animation Festival, or, MIAF 2012. The world unites as one in a place where age, race, religion, status, and cultural background are replaced by the artistic wonder that is animation. I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again: THIS is the event to blow your socks off and demolish the barriers of creative limitations you thought existed. But why take this fanboy’s word for it? Why not let the films speak for themselves…

This year focuses on Belgium and Poland. Natives – come support your nations! Non-natives – come see why the natives think they’re cooler than you! And to the anime fans out there: why not get a taste of REAL Japanese animation? Take Bonnie for example. Impressed? Well there’s much more where that came from.

Last night’s Opening Night Gala gave us a taste of what to expect from this year’s festival. This cannot be stressed enough: there is something in this festival for literally everyone. Everything from child-friendly animation to adult-only head trips; from the 1940s to the present day; from cut-out to claymation to CGI to 3D; with over 400 films from over 30 countries is very likely your fancy will be tickled. I will be there all week and so should you.

Lavazza Italian Film Festival Review: A Quiet Life (2010)

By Michael De Martino

(Claudio Cupellini, 2010, Italy, in Italian and German, Drama, 105 minutes)

A Neapolitan man, Rosario (Toni Servillo), runs a restaurant in Frankfurt, Germany. Suddenly Diego (Marco D’Amore), a man from his past, arrives on his doorstep and opens old wounds from Rosario’s past. The hidden life of crime is exposed as Rosario’s secrets unfold.

While I generally like to see a film with no prior knowledge of its content, this film will no doubt suffer criticism from those who are unfamiliar with the Camorra (Neapolitan mafia) and their garbage scandals. This information, which is only briefly touched on at the beginning of A Quiet Life, is absolutely vital to the story. Without this knowledge the film risks being dismissed as just another on-the-run style family drama.

A Quiet Life loses points not for being bad or ineffective, but because it’s not all that interesting. Only a handful of characters are ever presented, leaving little chance for suspense. Most of the action is merely fast editing which is frequently unnecessary.

In saying this, the film is entirely carried by a fantastic performance from Servillo. The wide emotional spectrum displayed by Servillo is executed with such expression that we have no choice but to remain engaged by his acting. Effective supporting roles from D’Amore and others further enhance this film being centred on the acting.

Although I wouldn’t go as far as saying this is a “must-see,” it is worth the experience. Especially if you happen to be Neapolitan.

6.8/10

MIFF 2011 Film Review: My Wedding and Other Secrets (2011)

By Michael De Martino

(Roseanne Liang, 2011, New Zealand, Comedy-Drama, 88 minutes)

A Chinese university student, Emily (played by the adorable Michelle Ang), lives in New Zealand and stumbles upon the love of her life, a fellow New Zealand-born student, James (Matt Whelan), but fears her family will not approve of their relationship due to their cultural differences.

The opening of My Wedding… is rather clunky. The lead actors try so hard to look like outcasts that they’re not entirely convincing. The relationship between Emily and James just sort of happens, and the cultural aspects forbidding the couple may be obvious to some, but a little more insight into Chinese culture could have answered a few questions instead of the assumed knowledge put onto the audience. Nevertheless, Ang is the one redeeming quality that keeps us engaged.

The script has a few hiccups. For the first two thirds of My Wedding… we are lead to believe it is the disapproving father who forbids their relationship. However, when Emily finally builds the courage to confront her father, we learn that the problem is actually with the mother, making the paranoia built up but the film almost pointless. In fact, all that is needed to satisfy the father is for James to learn how to propose in Mandarin – hardly the forbidden love of different cultures that the film initially makes itself out to be about.

Despite the mild clumsiness of the beginning, the film progressively improves from the characters being more defined, the characters being proactive about achieving their goals instead of hiding, and more believable acting. Towards the end Emily confronts her mother about living with James. This scene makes the entire film. It is perfectly written, amazingly acted by Ang, relevant and believable.

My Wedding… is an easy watch. It may not be the most original or revolutionary film you’ll see this year, but it will leave you with a soft smile on your face.

6/10

MIAF Day 4 – UPA: The UPA Style, The ‘Animate’ Collection

By Michael De Martino

UPA: The UPA Style

This collection of 11 films served as an introduction to the style of UPA. The UPA (United Productions of America) are a significant part of animation history which was founded in 1941 following the infamous Disney strike. The revolutionary UPA style of minimalist backgrounds and colour remains iconic to this day. These films are experimental for their time, daring, imaginative, and hilarious.

Here are my top picks for this screening:

Be Quiet, Kind, and Gentle (Phil Duncan, 1955) Hilarious sing-a-long about when to swallow your tongue in those sticky situations.

The Jaywalker (Robert Cannon, 1956) A documentary-style film focussing on a man’s simple passion – jaywalking.

Outlaws (Osmond Evans, 1955) The most memorable of the session. Special guest, Tee Bosustow, addressed this film as his favourite, and for good reason. Three outlaws rob trains. One is good with a gun, one is good with a rope, and the other runs like an antelope. This was the film that made me think “they just don’t make ‘em like they used to.” It seems so outdated by today’s standards but this just makes it that much more fun!

Rooty Toot Toot (John Hubley, 1952) Packed with tongue-in-cheek humour, this courtroom comedy follows a woman accused of murdering her husband. Singing and dancing, and bullet wounds, keep this wacky courtroom entertaining.

 

The ‘Animate’ Collection

More works from the evil hand of the UK. An array of styles, colours, and techniques fill this collection of 13 films funded by the ‘Animate’ Project.

Here are my top picks for this screening:

The Life Size Zoetrope (Mark Simon Hewis, 2007) Stop-motion flim consisting of people holding the single frames of the film. And at 6 minutes and 33 seconds, the effort involved alone must be commended.

Rabbit (Run Wrake, 2005) Haunting film involving creepy children and animals. Definitely not for the kids to see.

Tad’s Nest (Petra Freeman, 2009) Stunning paint-on-glass aesthetic hypnotises audiences with its dream-like fantasy.

MIAF Day 3 – Supinfocom; Careers Forum; RCA 25th Anniversary

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By Michael De Martino

Supinfocom: Le Lab d’Images Project

Supinfocom is a French 3D animation school. This was a special one-off opportunity for students to be teamed up with professional French graphic novel artists and designers. I’m not normally a big fan of 3D CGI animation; I much prefer the traditional styles, but I was not anticipating how much I would enjoy this session. Of the six sessions I have been to so far this could be the best one. All of these films are creative, imaginative, fun, and full of colour and expression. Most amazingly though is the fact that these films all took roughly 2-3 months to put together, which is an epic achievement considering how refined each film is.

Here are my top picks for this screening:

Cosmic Jungle (2010) Exaggerated colour fills this angular urban jungle where two dogs chase after a runaway fire hydrant.

Muzorama (2009) A head inside a mouth. Another head used as a soccer ball. A man whose eyes sit on top of his upside-down nose. A man riding a bicycle which has snails for wheels. If you can figure out what this film is about I would love to know…

Puppet Mansion (2010) The ghost train from hell featuring two cuddly critters and their battle with the ticket collector.

Rubika (2010) The world is a giant Rubik’s cube where gravity changes from vertical to horizontal for some unfortunate people.

Careers in Animation Forum

Fun and informative, this free forum gave the general public the chance to get an insight into the animation industry from four Australian professionals from different fields. Katrina Mathers, Jack Parry, Huni Bolliger, and Darren Bell spoke of how they entered the industry and how they have made a living through animation. The rest of the forum consisted of Q&A where anyone from the audience was given the chance to ask questions about the industry, how to make yourself known, and anything else they desired. The panel of animators stuck around afterwards to answer any further questions people wanted to ask. I spoke to Katrina Mathers who was extremely approachable and genuinely respects those who wish to seek her advice. A very valuable session for anyone with hopes of entering the animation industry.

RCA 25th Anniversary Retrospective

Just when I thought the Polish were dark… Wow! This collection of fourteen films, celebrating 25 years of the Royal College of the Arts, are among the creepiest I have ever seen. Who would have guessed the British had such an evil side to them?  A fascinating array of styles, this session featured multiple approaches to hand-made films. Pencil, ink, paint, models, stamps, and so on, were used to animate these painstakingly detailed films.

Here are my top picks for this screening:

Hello Dad (Christoph Simon, 1987) This film lead the session and boy did it go out with a bang. Some (including myself) bellowed in laughter, some stared in utter bemusement, and “WTF?” was echoed throughout the cinema. It must be seen to be believed.

Prophet And Lo$$ (Jonathan Bairstow, 1988) Creepy, energetic industrial workplace consisting of robots and clowns. Black and white, but full of excitement.

This Is Harrow (Monika Forsberg, 2001) A very simple looking animation of pencil on paper full of spirit and subtle comedy.

Toxic (Andrew McEwan, 1990) Haunting stop-motion film consisting of preserved dead animals. A platypus leads an army of animals to defeat an evil insect.

MIAF Day 2 – Focus on Poland 2, Abstract Showcase

By Michael De Martino

Focus on Poland 2

A continuation of Tuesday night’s session; this collection of nine films continued the morbid stories and dark aesthetics of the Polish. Even the comedic films had an undeniable layer of darkness to them. These films mainly consist of black and white with minimal use of colour. Even then, the colour mostly consisted of muted browns and greys. Darkness was also communicated through most of the films’ themes. Millhaven for example, one of the sessions top films, was inspired by a song from our home grown Nick Cave titled “The Curse of Millhaven”, which begins relatively normal but progressively gets more and more disturbing until we learn the young female singing the lyrics to the song is a psychotic killer who leaves us with the comforting words “All God’s children, they gotta die.” Regardless of the consistent eerie atmosphere presented by these films they all share a common attribute of being amazing.

Here are my top picks for this screening:

Exit (Grzegorz Koncewicz, 2006) This black and white film follows a man’s fantasy to win the girl from the apartment building across the street.

The Ritual (Zbigniew Czapla, 2010) Similar aesthetic to Exit, this beautiful stylised film consists entirely of black paint on white paper.

The Razor (Grzegorz Koncewicz, 2009) Arguably the best film of the session. It involves numerous animation techniques to communicate a man’s fear of the razor used to shave his facial hair. Surreal, fantastical, macabre, but most importantly: effective.

 

Abstract Showcase

Presenter and festival director, Malcolm Turner, opened this session by expressing his thoughts on abstract animation, “Trying to define what abstract animation is is about as much fun as being sodomised with your pants on.” This may well be due to the fact that pretty much all animation is abstract in its own way. This collection of films however delivered films even more abstract than regular abstract animation. These films can be described as experiments with colour, shapes, and film stock, accompanied but avant-garde auditory compositions. The seventeen films making up this session are experimental yet strangely beautiful head trips. They are too extreme to be indifferent about, but love or hate them, they will leave and impression on you.

Here are my top picks for this screening:

An Abstract Day (Oerd van Cuijlenborg, 2010) Arguably the top film of the session. A day-in-the-life story of a couple told through regular sound with abstract visuals to represent the sound.

Fiesta Brava (Steven Woloshen, 2011) The effort put into this film is mind boggling. A 3 minute, 26 second film consisting of scratching and painting the actual film stock to create the finished result. The erratic use of colour intertwined with the upbeat samba music complete the experience.

Metropolis (Mirai Mizue, 2009) Geometric assortment of buildings and lines accompanied by an industrial soundtrack.