Fresh from the Festivals: April 2000's Film Reviews

Fresh from the Festivals: April 2000's Film Reviews
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Third Place: Giovanni & Alice Fly South for the Winter
On a completely different note than its fellow award-winners, Kevin Gralewski’s film, Giovanni & Alice Fly South for the Winter, tells a whimsical tale of two birds who leave town only to be bombarded by a storm of other birds doing precisely the same thing. After that, the details get a bit sketchier, but essentially the birds fall into the ocean and one of them gets really, really big (possibly by eating fish). Running just over three minutes in length, it is no surprise that its story is less ‘developed’ than most of the other award winners. It excels primarily in terms of its visuals.

Gralewski worked on this film for about a year, using cels and cutouts, as well as various found objects. It is notable for its design elements, particularly in terms of color and textures, which were painted by hand. The film reflects Gralewski’s interest in collage and his desire to make his audience see ‘ordinary’ objects in a new way. Gralewski is still a student at Cal Arts, where he is presently working on his graduation film in the Character Animation department.

First Place: Luz
Luz (Light) tells the story of a girl who steps out of her ordinary world to have an extraordinary experience. She sees herself on a movie screen and returns home, having been at least slightly transformed. The narrative is fairly elusive, but that is the general idea. Its director, Jose Javier Martinez, has been studying in the United States for four years, with the assistance of a fellowship from the Society of Spanish Writers and Publishers in conjunction with the Fulbright Institute. He is currently working toward his MFA in Film and Television, with an emphasis in animation.

Working on the project for a year and a half, Martinez used a combination of ElectricImage, Photoshop and After Effects software, with Form Z being used to model the girl. Her character design reflects the director’s interest in puppet films: she is hard and somewhat ‘bouncy’ in her movement, as a puppet would be. The visual design of the animation is further enhanced through interesting lighting and atmospheric effects. In the context of these visuals, the potential of the sound elements (for example, the dialogue, which consists largely of the girl counting and her mother nagging her to come in) seems underdeveloped. Still, the project is obviously successful on many levels, since it garnered first place in its category of the Television Academy’s awards. Martinez plans to seek work in animation in the United States before possibly returning to his native Spain, either to work in animation or possibly to direct live-action films.