On a rainy Saturday morning I entered the liminal space that is Odeon Great Northern and found it populated – a rare sight. At the entrance a Manchester Film Festival space was set up for photos and interviews, and small groups watched on as the filmmakers posed and answered questions in front of cameras. A short while later everyone migrated up the escalators and filled seats for a showing of ten animated short films.
Animation is slow, hard work, requiring considerable time and dedication to complete. From six different countries and ranging from 2 to 15 minutes long, each film was striking, and the creators present for the Q&A were clearly proud of their projects. Something I noticed about all of them was spectacular sound design, and most had captivating music. I have chosen to comment on a few of my favourites.
Burnout was from the UK, directed by Matthew Hendry and Tolli Myers, and took a year and a half to shoot. It was stop-motion with a unique blend of a live-action actor and a plasticine figure, something that required meticulous patience from the star. Tolli explained that there was a long storyboarding process for the project, and that actions, expressions, and dramatic poses were key. The tense, stressful atmosphere was instantly immersive, and the comedy that followed was cleverly chaotic. The set was also a highlight, which Tolli said they built themselves. You can watch the teaser here.
Lumber Slumber was made by Filip Wikström from Sweden, who created it entirely by himself. Taking inspiration from his home country, the film was set in a pine-tree forest, with a lodge built using a Swedish technique. His CG world resembled soft felt (Filip said that rendering the hair strands nearly ruined his computer) and was effective for creating a cosy feel. This was enhanced by palpable sound effects and a lack of dialogue. There were screen-wide reactions of ‘aww’ when some of the trees came to life, and a satisfied chuckle at the comedic ending. You can see some behind-the-scenes clips on the creator’s Instagram page.
Next, from Hong Kong, came Blacky The Metal Arm Cat (dir. Nic Ho). Immediate action and atmospheric music threw you into a world of martial arts and revenge. Cool character design and the conflict between alien technology and traditional martial arts made for some impressive fight scenes. This was the longest film, and it was easy to feel quickly invested in the main character thanks to flashbacks and readily established relationships. It was also one of the few shorts that had dialogue, which was written well to introduce the story without too much exposition. You can watch the trailer here.
The Big Bad Wolf was another UK project, a sort of extension of the Three Little Pigs fable. It was made at Aardman by Leo Wright, who appreciates the tactility of stop motion. He purposely left signs of human touching on the plasticine, and embraced the textures of materials. He also said that plasticine was a nightmare to work with because it quickly picks up dust and dirt, and that shooting took around 7 months. Hard not to take inspiration from where he’s from, Leo set it in the Black Country and included numerous references among names of shops and characters, and the narrator at the beginning and end had the distinctive accent. The humour was marvellous, the story heartwarming, and the lack of dialogue meant leaning into noises, facial expressions and body language, which made for an engaging viewing. You can watch the film here.
