Friday, September 9th, 2005
8:30 - Live music by Paper Legs
9:00 - Action-packed 'toons without all the talk
Outdoors at Automotive High School
50 Bedford Avenue, Williamsburg, Brooklyn.
Dress warmly (it's cooler sitting still than in the streets).
In the event of rain the show is indoors at the same location.
Unspeakable Animation
We received so many extraordinary animated films this summer that we had to devote two entire programs exclusively to 'toons just so that we could fit them in. In this, our Unspeakable Animation program, we bring together a collection of shorts that tell their tales without including a single spoken word. But, while many other wordless films might lull you into tranquility, these 'toons grab you by the eyeballs and drag you along on a fantastic journey. On this night ghouls will sweep shinglers from their rooftops, dogs will double in size and chase balls into the void, fish will walk the land with hatchets and ill intent, bombs will go boom, dentists will violently tear teeth, humanoids will drink to excess, aliens will annihilate all in sight, evolution will go mad and cartoonists will confront the enraged ghosts of their maniacal past creations. In short, these animators have a story to tell and they don't have the time to talk things over!
This program would not have been possible if not for the brilliant curating assistance of Signe Baumane and the wonderful short animation brought to us by Square Footage Films.ÈTheir incredible DVD features several of the films in this program and includes some of the best new toons in the world.È It is available for purchase at www.squarefootagefilms.com and at this show.
THE FILMS:
9 (Shane Acker / Los Angeles, CA / 10:40)
In a gothic futuristic wasteland reminiscent of the wrecked cities of post-World War II Europe, one brave sackcloth creature battles an energy-sucking monster for the souls of his comrades.
Life in Transition (John Dilworth / New York, NY / 10:00)
Academy Award-winner John Dilworth makes his first trip to the roof with his beautiful 2005 ASIFA East award winning demented, manic-depressive, surreal self-portrait.
Fetch (Nina Paley / Brooklyn, NY / 4:30)
A frantic race through conflicting perspectives in which a pesky pooch sprints through M.C. Escher-esque labyrinths and finally into the unsettled mind of his beleaguered owner. Courtesy of Square Footage Films
Animation Station 1 (ZZalgernon / Los Angeles, CA / 1:30)
Southern California video nut ZZalgernon helped a class of 3rd graders to make a series of bizarre flash animations and then arranged them into short film form, accompanied by the frantic strings from a Bernard Hermann score.
Seventeen (Hisko Hulsing / The Netherlands / 12:00)
A mesmerizing and surreal portrait of a young Dutch roof contractor bullied by his older co-workers to the brink of a drunken madness.
Life (Mo Willems / New York, NY / 7:00)
A hilariously pessimistic—yet exhilaratingly fast-paced—interpretation of the violence of evolution. Courtesy of Square Footage Films
Dentist (Signe Baumane / New York, NY / 10:00)
New York's reigning princess of animation delights anew with her short animation about a nightmarish trip to the dentist. Courtesy of Square Footage Films
KaBoom (PES / New York, NY / 2:00)
Ribbons become cannon blasts and peanuts become miniaturized implements of mass in the hands of stop motion master and Rooftop alum PES. Courtesy of Square Footage Films
Atlas Gets a Drink (Mike Overbeck / New York / 3:30)
A farcical animated vision of the breakdown of the laws of nature in which cows consume rabbits, killer whales brandish hatchets and the French rush into war. Courtesy of Square Footage Films
Space War (Christy Karacas / New York, NY / 3:15)
When we were little boys we would often sketch scenes of epic battles between giant-headed mutants, and multi-limbed aliens but it took the twisted imagination of Christy Karacas to bring these violent adorable freaks to life. Courtesy of Square Footage Films
Awkward (Cesar Kuriyama / Brooklyn, NY / 2:30)
Next time you get wasted you should make sure to check the label before you start spanking yourself in public.
Marvelous, Keen Loony Bin (Lizzi Akana / Berkeley, CA / 5:37)
Balloon brained monkeys dodge dangling cacti, a babbling bagel gets bashed, and a defaced female lipstick traces her own visage in this beautiful and surreal exploration of identity.
