Day 6 - Big Muddy Animation Showcase

Since I had heard that the animation showcase for the Big Muddy Film Festival was phenomenal this year, I made my way to Longbranch Coffeehouse this afternoon to witness it for myself. There were nine entries shown, some of which were exquisitely beautiful and captivating. Of the nine entries, three animated shorts stood out above all others: Let's Pollute, Skylight, and Father and Sister.

Let's Pollute by Geefwee Boedoe and Skylight by David Baas were both hysterical in their individual renditions of environmental issues through a style resembling public announcement spots from the 1950s. Skylight is a short animation that begins in Antarctica where a skylight, or a hole in the ozone, roasts the adorable penguins residing there. The film shows different types of animals turning into roasted turkeys and ends with a turkey turning into ham. It tells the environmental issues of greenhouse gases in a funny and relate-able way for viewers of all ages. Let's Pollute does the same thing but uses comical human beings to demonstrate the effects of pollution while telling you that pollution is important. It shows a family being taught to pollute and gives pollution rules to follow, but at the end of the film you see how disgusting the world is, and the now-polluting family is riddled with tumorous growths on their faces.

The first film we were shown was Father and Sister by Seyeon Kim. This film was clever and comical as well, but did not tell an environmental story; instead it told the story of a priest and a nun. A bee follows the flower-toting nun into the church, where he causes a comical course of action to occur. The priest is in his office and thinks that the nun is attempting to strip for him, when in reality, she was simply attempting to swat at the bee and mishaps would happen accidentally. The father runs into confession, holds a cross up as if fending off the devil, and so forth. In the end, you sense a bond between the nun and the priest as the bee flees out of the church and they look into each other's eyes.

The animation showcase was outstanding, and I hope other CP 449 students got the chance to go. If you didn't get to go this year, I urge you to check out the Big Muddy Film Festival in 2011!