It was fun seeing this years’ Oscar nominated Animated Shorts at the Charles Friday night. The program runs about 90 minutes, and there is quite a handful of “highly commended” films. One of them, THE KINEMATOGRAPH, really captured the audience. A 12 minute film from the Polish studio Platige Image, it was adapted from a comic and tells the story of an inventor in late 19th century England who is obsessed with his dream of inventing a film process. According to the press kit, the film includes 17,250 frames, 40,000 frames in strips. 5,000 trees with 10,000 leaves and 100,000 polygons each were created in the computers’ memory. Its from Polish filmmaker Tomek Baginski. You can watch the trailer on Youtube.
Another one we all liked was GRANNY O’GRIMM’S SLEEPING BEAUTY, from Ireland’s Nick Phelan who is part of the animation shop Brown Bag Films in Dublin. Adapted from a comedy sketch developed and performed by Phelan’s friend Kathleen O’Rourke (who voices Granny), it tells the classic Sleeping Beauty fairy tale as twisted through the eyes of a cranky grandmother. You can watch the film on Youtube.
~Jed Dietz, MFF Director
Maryland Film Festival Blog 