Within the world of animation, most experimentation occurs within short format productions, whether they be high budgeted commercials, low budgeted independent shorts, or something in between. The growing number of short film festivals around the world attest to the vitality of these works, but there are few other venues for exhibition of them or even written reviews. As a result, distribution tends to be difficult and irregular. On a regular basis, Animation World Magazine will highlight some of the most interesting with short descriptive overviews.

If you have the QuickTime plug-in, you can view a clip from each film by simply clicking the image.

This Month:

Autofoto (2001), 2.75 min., directed by Avi Ofer, Israel. Info: Avi Ofer, 168/b Ben-Gurion Rd., Givataim 53260, Israel. Email: info@aviofer.com.

The ErlKing (2002), 5.5 min., directed by Ben Zelkowicz, USA. Info: Ben Zelkowicz. Email: theerlking@hotmail.com.

Leashlessness (1998), 3.25 min., directed by Stefan Gruber, USA. Info: Stefan Gruber, 3812 S. Hudson St., #A, Seattle, WA, 98118, USA. Email: yell@stefangruber.com.

Shh. (2001), 5.25 min., directed by Adam Robb, Australia. Info: Adam Robb. Email: robb_adam@hotmail.com.

Skin (2000), 4 min., directed by Bobby de Groot, The Netherlands. Info: Bobby de Groot, Van Collenstraat, 1232 VR, Loosdrecht, The Netherlands. Tel: 31(0)622332041. Email: bobby@zombimation.nl.

A magical photo booth spits out unexpected photos in Autofoto. © Avi Offer.

Autofoto
Using simple line drawings with occasional touches of color, Avi Ofer displays an appealing, loose style that works exceedingly well in this whimsical vignette about a photo booth that delivers unexpected results. It's a great idea and Ofer clearly has the skill to make it work: the setup and the first narrative surprise are well-timed and engaging, and there are a number of cute touches that enhance the humor and poignancy of the events. Even the somewhat odd choice of using a solo acoustic guitar accompaniment is reasonably effective (and certainly provides a notable contrast to the electronic soundtrack usually found in animated shorts these days). The problem, though -- which is also endemic to so many of these films -- is that Autofoto doesn't really have an ending, or much development beyond the initial idea, which makes the film more an illustrated concept than a satisfying narrative experience.

Avi Ofer studied photography and visual communications at a number of schools in Israel and has worked for the last several years in design and animation in Tel-Aviv. Autofoto is a personal project, which he created without a storyboard, drawing on a WACOM tablet directly into the computer. After winning an Internet short-film contest, Autofoto was shown on opening night of the 2001 Jerusalem Film Festival. It has also screened at Annecy, Anima Mundi, I Castelli Animati, and several other festivals.