For the first time, Cannes Classics will feature an animator, and the honor goes to Norman McLaren, who won the Short Film Palme dor in 1955 with BLINKITY BLANK. A selection of 13 McLaren films has been put together in homage to the great filmmaker and to celebrate 65 years of animation at the National Film Board of Canada.
Jacques Bensimon, government film commissioner/chairperson of the NFB, said, McLarens genius continues to amaze us. Every film in this program underscores the groundbreaking artistry and exceptional diversity of this great animation pioneer. We at the NFB are delighted to witness the return of McLarens masterpieces to the Cannes Film Festival, particularly since they are so in tune with the spirit of the Cannes Classics section, a fulcrum of film heritage.
Screening in the Buñuel room on May 22, 2006, at 5:00 pm, the program will offer festival goers nearly 90 minutes of McLarens best including, OPENING SPEECH: MCLAREN (1961), MAIL EARLY (1941), STARS AND STRIPES (1940), HEN HOP (1942), LA POULETTE GRISE (1947), BEGONE DULL CARE (1949), BLINKITY BLANK (1955), A CHAIRY TALE (1957), LE MERLE (1958), LINES HORIZONTAL (1962), PAS DE DEUX (1968), SYNCHROMY (1971) and NEIGHBOURS (1952). The 13 films, which offer a glimpse of their creators aesthetic inventiveness, garnered a total of 72 international awards. The program precedes the release in France on June 1 of the NFBs new DVD compilation of McLarens complete works.
McLarens most important works were made at the NFB, where he founded the animation department and directed 60 films, including the Oscar-winning NEIGHBOURS (1952) and PAS DE DEUX (1968). Born in Scotland in 1914, McLaren died in Montreal, Canada, in 1987.
Founded in 1939, the National Film Board of Canada has produced more than 11,000 films and other audiovisual works and won more than 4,500 awards, including 11 Oscars. As Canada's public film producer, the NFB produces and distributes distinctive, culturally diverse, challenging and relevant audiovisual works that provide Canada and the world with a unique Canadian perspective. For more information, go to www.nfb.ca or call (800) 267-7710.
Rick DeMott
Animation World Network
Creator of Rick's Flicks Picks
