Animation Extravaganza: Thursday, June 15th

As mentioned before, the Atlanta Film Festival's night of animation, titled The Animation Extravaganza, will be this Thursday, June 15th, at the Lefont Garden Hills Cinema. There are two screenings that night: 7pm and 9:45pm. It's usually a big seller, so I suggest buying your tickets in advance. By the way, ASIFA-Atlanta helped out in the selection process for the screening, with several of our members taking a gander at a tall stack of animated goodness. Some great talent out there—I'm jealous. I got a chance to see all of the films that were selected for the screening, so I definitely can attest to an excellent showcase of animation this Thursday! Some great work, professionally as well as independently. Our local cats did a fine job as well, holding their own with the big boys. It should be a fun night.

Here's what's on the bill for the evening, in alphabetical order:

BUBBLECRAFT
6 min.
Dir: Geoff Marslett

CHICKENHEADS
4 min.
Screens with Brett's Animation Film Slam winner FLUIDTOONS (3 min.).
Dir: Brett W. Thompson
(Local Fimmaker)

DRAGON
8 min.
Dir: Troy Morgan

DRAWING LESSONS
6 min.
Dir: Maureen Selwood



FUMI AND THE BAD LUCK FOOT
8 min.
Dir: David Chai

ICHTHYS
15 min.
Dir: Marek Skrobecki


JUXTAPOSER
3 min.
Dir: Joanna Davidovich
(Local Filmmaker)


THE LITTLE MATCHGIRL
8 min.
Dir: Roger Allers

LOOM
5 min.
WORLD PREMIERE
Dir: Scott Kravitz

MAN DRAWING A RECLINING WOMAN
5 min.
Dir: D. Grant Goans
(Local Filmmaker)

THE MANTIS PARABLE
8 min.
Dir: Josh Staub

THE MOON AND THE SON
28 min.
Dir: John Canemaker

THE SANDBOX
6 min.
Dir: Kory Juul

THE ZIT
5 min.
Dir: Mike Blum


Notice that the local yokels are: CHICKENHEADS/FLUIDTOONS, JUXTAPOSER, and MAN DRAWING A RECLINING WOMAN. I'm not familiar with D. Grant Goans, but I do know the other two: Brett W. Thompson was the lucky fellow to win the first ever Animation Film Slam back in March, and Jo Davidovich is the newest member of Primal Screen! Both are frequent commenters here on The Ward-O-Matic, and I couldn't have been more happier for them. To have your work screened at the Atlanta Film Festival is a great opportunity and I wish the best of luck to them both.

A couple of interesting stand-outs for me in this line-up:

1. Disney's THE LITTLE MATCHGIRL is a holdover from a third installment of FANTASIA, which I believe was canned when they dropped the 2D bomb back about a year and a half ago. Looks like Disney's trying to tap into the film fest circuit with this one, not unlike what they did with DESTINO. I doubt it'll do as well as that earlier film, though, but at least they're putting this film out there for the public to see. It's a serious film, surprisingly holding onto the original Hans Christian Andersen story's somber note at the end. I really dug the film—the color palette and layouts were very well done, and the animation was well executed. The music, however, didn't do it for me. It didn't pull me in like some of the original FANTASIA segments of 1940.

2. John Canemaker's Oscar-winning THE MOON AND THE SON will be a highlight of the evening. It's a little long, but you'll be pulled into the story and the time will fly by. It's a fascinating account of John trying to come to terms with his father's death several years ago. It's an "imagined conversation" with his father, which makes it all the more heartwrenching to know that he was never able to talk with his father this openly and blatently. Something to be said about art therapy. You can tell that this film was definitely a catharsis for John.

3. FUMI AND THE BAD LUCK FOOT is a hilarious short made by animation instructor David Chai and his animation students at San Jose State University. Some pretty funny sight gags with fun animation. It's been making the festival rounds lately, so I'm happy to see it screened here in Atlanta.

The great thing about animation at film festivals is that there are all kinds of mediums and methods being shown: stop-motion, traditional, and CG. The same can be said for what will be shown at the Animation Extravaganza. A great mix of talent and vision, all shown within an hour and a half timeframe. Please come and support the local scene, as well as animation in general! I'll be doing some emceeing that night, so don't be afraid to heckle me in the audience. Quaint banter will ensue.

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ATTENTION: We are still looking for more volunteers for the night! Please contact Vella and let her know which shift you can do. Remember: you can check out the other screening for free if you volunteer!

See you there!