Animated Short Screens at 21 Film Festivals This Year and Garners Interest From Numerous Entertainment Outlets
“Botnik,” the animated short produced by <a href="http://<a href="http://(www.calabashanimation.com)“>(www.calabashanimation.com).>Calabash Animation and directed by Calabash’s Jacqueline Smessaert-Brennan wraped up its film festival run at the end of 2009 with appearances at Filmstock in Luton, UK; Tallgrass Film Festival, Wichita, KS; and the Ojai-Ventura International Film Festival, Ojai, CA.
In the last few months <a href="http://<a href="http://(www.calabashanimation.com)“>(www.calabashanimation.com).movies/view.asp?file=botnik_trailer.mov”>”Botnik” appeared at Comic Con Independent Film Festival, San Diego, CA; Raindance Film Festival, London; Valley Con, Fargo, ND; LA Shorts Fest, Los Angeles, CA; and Temecula Valley Film and Music Festival.
“The last year has been an amazing learning experience for me,” Smessaert-Brennan says. “We’ve met with some amazing people who love the film and have encouraged us to keep pushing forward with it. Now that we’re nearing he end of our festival run we’re looking forward to pursuing any and all opportunities for ‘Botnik.’ Our goal remains the same as when we started: to get the film seen by as many people in as many mediums as possible, which includes TV, DVD, web, mobile, airlines and beyond.”
<a href="http://<a href="http://(www.calabashanimation.com)“>(www.calabashanimation.com).movies/view.asp?file=botnik_trailer.mov”>”Botnik” highlights from ’09 include:
• Winning at the Palm Springs International Film Festival in the category of Best Animated Short;
• Being accepted into Comic Con, and serving on a panel with acclaimed animator Bill Plympton and several notable others;
• Meeting with Matt Groening (creator of “The Simpsons”) at Comic Con, which resulted in a screener request from FOX Television.
Written and Directed by Smessaert-Brennan, ‘Botnik” is a ten-minute cel/digital animated short that tells the story of a frustrated wannabe artist who longs to make the scene with resident hipsters and win the heart of a beautiful beatnik girl. Thwarted by a crushing combination of creative block and pressure to produce, he retreats to his retro-laboratory and emerges with the solution: a gleaming robot artist programmed to create the ultimate art show.
According to Calabash Creative Director Wayne Brejcha, <a href="http://<a href="http://(www.calabashanimation.com)“>(www.calabashanimation.com).movies/view.asp?file=botnik_trailer.mov”>”Botnik” represents the company’s most ambitious film production to date and came about thanks to Calabash’s internal film program that encourages staff animators to submit film ideas with the best one being produced. The program began in 2001 and was an immediate success with its first short, “Stubble Trouble,” receiving a 2002 Academy Award nomination. Since then the company has produced five animated shorts, all of which are available on the company’s website.
“We are extremely proud of “Botnik,” both from a creative and an execution standpoint,” said Brejcha. “It’s complex in terms of the story and animation technique, and we look forward to sharing it with the world on the film festival circuit and beyond.”
Web Resources
Click here to view the trailer for Calabash’s short <a href="http://<a href="http://(www.calabashanimation.com)“>(www.calabashanimation.com).movies/view.asp?file=botnik_trailer.mov”>”Botnik”
http://<a href="http://(www.calabashanimation.com)“>(www.calabashanimation.com).movies/view.asp?file=botnik_trailer.mov
Click here for more info about <a href="http://<a href="http://(www.calabashanimation.com)“>(www.calabashanimation.com).movies/view.asp?file=botnik_trailer.mov”>”Botnik”
http://www.myspace.com/Botnik_2008
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1362368/
About <a href="http://<a href="http://(www.calabashanimation.com)“>(www.calabashanimation.com).>Calabash Animation
Led by Creative Director Wayne Brejcha and Executive Producer Sean Henry, <a href="http://<a href="http://(www.calabashanimation.com)“>(www.calabashanimation.com).>Calabash Animation, Inc. (<a href="http://(www.calabashanimation.com)“>(www.calabashanimation.com). is the Chicago, IL-based animation production studio, known for its award-winning cel, 3D and stop-motion animation for the advertising and entertainment industries. <a href="http://<a href="http://(www.calabashanimation.com)“>(www.calabashanimation.com).>Calabash Animation is perhaps best known for their creative development of some of America’s most beloved brand icons. In addition to working on some of today’s top advertising the company has also produced several acclaimed short films. It’s 2002 short ”Stubble Trouble” was nominated for an Academy Award in 2002. Its most recent <a href="http://<a href="http://(www.calabashanimation.com)“>(www.calabashanimation.com).movies/view.asp?file=botnik_trailer.mov”>”Botnik” will hit the festival circuit in Fall 2008. Click here to visit the Calabash website <a href="http://(www.calabashanimation.com)“>(www.calabashanimation.com).
Media Contact: Right Word Media Ray Ecke p. 973.726.3797 f. 973.726.3798 c. 201.741.1092 Contact via email
“Ǝvolution” Comes Full Circle At The Chelsea Film Festival
The Chelsea Film Festival, running from October 16th through October 20th, 2024, at Regal Cinemas here in Union Square, is set to host the East Coast premiere of Ǝvolution, a thought-provoking experimental micro-short film that proves big ideas can come in small packages and in perfect circles.
In just 1 minute 16 seconds, this cinematic gem by Award-Winning Director Romina Schwedler, with original music by Argentine Composer Ignacio Montoya Carlotto, explores a cycle as old as time: life leads to progress, progress leads to destruction, and destruction, well, leads back to life. But is this vicious circle unbreakable? Ǝvolution suggests the answer is yes, unless we decide to open our eyes.
Inspired by the overwhelming number of recent events that threaten human existence, Ǝvolution, possibly the shortest film in this 12th edition of the festival, plays out entirely through the symbolism of circles, cleverly illustrating —in the blink of an eye— the repeating patterns of history, and confronting viewers with the uncomfortable truth that our so-called “progress” may, in fact, be guiding us to our own ruin.Premiering at the Regal 14 Union Square, New York City, on October 18, 2024, at 11 a.m., Romina Schwedler's micro-short, featuring Leah Young with cinematography by Alan J. Carmona, will be sure to spark conversations longer than the film itself! Forcing viewers to reconsider the true meaning of evolution, not just as a biological process, but as a reflection of our collective journey as humans.
With a string of festival appearances across the globe, including CineGlobe at CERN (Switzerland/France), Oscar®... Read More