In a dystopian future, it’s one man’s job to check faucets for leakage and wastage. Paolo Chianta directs and animates “Tap Runner,” an animated sci-fi short, hand-drawn with a ballpoint pen and characterized by a melancholic spirit. His job does not permit him to actually fix the taps — that’s t...
A colorful compendium pairing musical genres with varieties of flowers. Luke Strickler directs and animates “Music for Plants,” which visualizes a series of melodic mash ups — “Sunflower Ska,” “Punk Petunias,” “Dandelion Dubstep,” et al. Morphing seamlessly between styles and tones, each chapter ...
A medley of overheard banter and personal musings about love and the cliches of love, i.e. “the same little message every night.” Directed by Peter Wagner, “It's All Related!” is an experimental animated film where mundane conversations about nachos, bitcoin, and psychiatry are flavored with a de...
A young girl connects deeply with nature while fearful of her brutish father. “Ciervo,” directed by Pilar Garcia-Fernandezsesma, is a coming-of-age animated film — a sensory exploration of girlhood, family life and country living, particularly on the themes of freedom vs. captivity, and hunter vs...
A young woman copes with heartbreak, blackheads, and bad therapy. Emily Ann Hoffman directs “Blackheads,” a study on relationships and gender roles, melding stop motion and 2D animation with a nuanced sense of realism. Sofia has just broken up with her boyfriend and she’s struggling with anxiety ...
A world decimated by a meteor tries to put itself back together. “Le Saucier,” directed by Eric Paschal Johnson and Liana Finck, is a lovely assemblage of hand-drawn illustrations, narrated by Tom Felton telling a story of the rediscovery of some of mankind’s finest achievements. Digging through ...
During the Covid-19 pandemic, a mother returns her son’s missed phone call. “It’s Your Mother Calling,” directed by NoBudge favorite Travis Wood, is a touching animated micro-short that uses a real voicemail message over a series of colorful visuals. It’s a portrait of longing and motherly advice...
In 1968, a young flight attendant bought 900 lbs of marijuana in Jamaica and tried to smuggle it out. Directed by Matthew Salton.
After meeting at a punk show, a young man becomes infatuated with Selene and threatens to become a ‘happy person.’ Jack Dunphy directs “Revelations,” a darkly comedic memoir — romantic, psychedelic, etc — animated with paper cut-outs and carried by a forthright voiceover. From the moment he lays ...
While making an animated film, a filmmaker must decide whether to stop working with his assistant or stop sleeping with her. “Brontosaurus,” directed, animated, and voiced by Jack Dunphy, is a brutally honest and darkly funny portrait of a messy relationship, presented as a series of pencil drawi...
In a trash-filled city, a homeless woman's encounter with a fish takes an unexpected turn. Elly Stern directs “Waste Away,” a beautifully designed and executed stop-motion animated film, an allegory of motherhood in various forms, and a depiction of the overabundance, wastefulness and decay of mo...
A portrait of a roommate named Kayla, a teacher who watches French movies and drinks three cups of tea at a time. Directed by Travis Wood, “Kayla in 1A” is a film about two strangers living together and establishing no connection. “We’ve lived together for six months. I don’t know anything about ...
As an eight-year-old kid, director Travis Wood had two bikes stolen in the course of a month. In “One Peg Boss,” he narrates the tale over a charmingly simple animation, ruminating on his memories and coming to terms with the incidents. The first bike was stolen immediately after receiving as a b...
In a room, there are four people. | Directed and Animated by
Cassie Shao.
A young woman drifts through a series of wintry adventures after leaving her backyard and heading into the woods. A lovely stop-motion animation by Evie Metz and Nick Daly, “Snow Angel” envisions a magical place where you can ride a reindeer, or ice skate on a pond encircled by giant sunflowers. ...
In the future, a data limit is reached causing the internet to spill out into the real world. Luke Strickler directs and animates “2064,” an absurdist art video using stock 3D models of common American products and brands to paint a ridiculous future. A giant floating Mario becomes the Earth’s ne...
Though the big city may appear to be endless concrete and steel, it is teeming with hidden life underneath. So proposes the new film by Luke Strickler, “Scenes From the City,” an absurdist 3D animation that illustrates the behavior and thoughts of a series of sentient buildings, stop signs, and t...
The sequel to Luke Strickler's "2064" imagines a future where our dying brains are uploaded to an online infinity full of big horses, hot gods, and french Pikachus. “2064: Cloud 9.2,” uses a cheap print-out aesthetic to continue exploring an absurd future with mind-expanding projections. In“2064,...
A colorful animated tale of a one-eyed woman and the guilt she feels after destroying her home planet. “Starshine Mountain,” directed by Corrinne James, is a wonderfully imaginative fairy tale / creation myth that begins with a cataclysmic series of events. Odette is a scientist on Earth who one ...
