LUCIDMEDIA

Lucid Forge at WFAC 2006

Written by Adam A. Donaldson & Stephen J. Noel Wednesday, 09 May 2007 08:21

The primary venue for the festival was the 682-seat Gig Theatre, formerly known as the Odeon Hyland. Films were shown punctually and festival attendees were able to enjoy a variety of steamed coffees provided by A Matter of Taste Cafe. Tickets cost adults $12 for one film or series of shorts (“Tidbits”), but animation enthusiasts could purchase a festival pass for only $90.
Festival curator Joseph Chen explained that one of the festival’s primary purposes was to offer animation as a medium for adults. Animated cinema in Asia is much more popular among adults than it is here. This acceptance has spawned many feature-length anime in a wide variety of genres and with complex imagery and ideas suitable for the minds of adults. The festival provided plenty of evidence for this view, and seeing these films in either 35mm or high definition, as their creators intended, was a real treat.
WATERLOO FESTIVAL OF ANIMATED CINEMA, 2006 Joseph Chen, Curator
Thursday, November 16, 2006 by Stephen J. Noel
		Origin: Spirits of the Past (Japan, 2005) Directed by Sugiyama Keiichi - Gonzo Digimatio Canadian premiere
Probably best known for his work on Evangelion, Sugiyama Keiichi marks his debut as a feature-length anime director with the release of Gin-iro no Kami no Agito (Origin: Spirits of the Past). Origin also marks the entrance of Gonzo Digimation into full-length cinema production. The story is post-apocalyptic science fiction, set about three hundred years after the earth has been messed up really bad. Water is the principle resource with which the three colonies of survivors are mostly concerned. One group “mines“ it and another tries to work with the forest and its inhabitants, the Druids who comprise the third and final group.
I bought right in from the outset; I liked what was being implied by the narrative, the soundtrack by Iwasaki Taku was masterfully done with full orchestra, and the animation was very good to excellent. Real sky/clouds and rushing water were used to enhance the realism, but I didn’t go there expecting to see a lot of that anyway, so the effect it had on me was one of distraction at a few points during the screening. There was also some CG animation used in the film; this was most noticeable in the quadruple-rail train.
Because the festival was more or less being touted as “animation: not just for children,” I was somewhat disappointed with the ending, which was, for me, a bit too unbelievable, even for the SF genre. I had also hoped to see more of the fascinating early developments explained in more detail. I’m not quite certain if this could have been accomplished in less than two hours, especially since Origin was already 94 minutes long. Maybe this story would have been better used as a short, single-arc series. Still, I was glad to have seen the film; many scenes were exceptional, the action sequences were usually over the top, and the message was great. So catch it if you can to watch with your family.
		The Book of the Dead (Japan, 2005) Directed by Kawamoto Kihachiro - Imagica, Dentsu
The principle influences of Book of the Dead director Kawamoto Kihachiro are Czech stop-motion animation and Kabuki theatre, and that’s pretty much what the viewer gets with this film. Áccording to Kawamoto, the story is “based on a true tale from the Nara Period, set around 750 AD.” This is about the same time frame in which Buddhism was imported into Japan from China. A young noble girl, Iratsume, is sent a scroll of sutras from her father, and she hand copies a thousand of them. Naturally, she is deeply affected by the message within and ends up in the mountains at a temple. Once she arrives, she is visited by the ghost of a wordly prince who cannot find peace, and although she would do what she could to provide this, the lesson seems to be that the well-being of the individual must be worked towards by that person, in the present life.
The story wasn’t completely serious and religious, however; several light-hearted moments continued to bring a smile to my face, but the aesthetic is definitely an ancient Japanese one, high art from another time and place brought to a relatively contemporary medium. In another respect, if you spend a lot of time watching Jerry and Ray reruns, this might not be the way to go, but it might just manage to snap a few people out of neutral. The traditional music used in the film was carefully selected and fits seamlessly. The animation is meticulous, the imagery superb.
Again, this would be a great film to watch with family, but the action is far too slow for most youngsters. As an art film for adults, Book of the Dead is better than average—if you like this kind of animation or animation in general or if you haven’t experienced it and want to see something that is very tasteful that has been painstakingly executed. Among Kawamoto’s other projects I found fascinating was his coordination of 35 master animators who produced a two-minute short each, based on a haiku from the poet Matsuo Basho.
Friday, November 17, 2006 by Adam A. Donaldson
		Princes and Princesses (France, 2000) Directed by Michel Ocelot - La Fabrique / Les Armateurs / Studio O / Gebeka Films
Prince and Princesses is a French film that is really five short vignettes in one. Each segment begins the same way, with a group of three storytellers kicking around ideas for some kind of sketch to perform, and once they figure out the details, they’re dressed by a techno-wizard costume-generating machine and perform the short play. The title not only comes from one of the episodes, but it’s also the general theme, as the stories involve some form of royalty or another.
Some vignettes take place in a specific setting, like 19th-century Japan for “The Old Lady’s Coat” or ancient Egypt for “The Fig Boy”. The others just have a kind of general medieval setting, usually involving knights or princes winning the hearts (or at least trying to) of princesses. These tales usually come with some kind of simple moral, like how a court attendant’s greed leads him to a cut-off head or how a knight’s mercy to lesser creatures lends him help at just the right time.
The animation style is in the form of detailed silhouette drawings over simple and static backgrounds, which sounds simple to be sure, but director Michel Ocelot impressively mines a lot of charm out this method. One segment, “The Sorceress” uses a bizarre Chuck-Jones-does-Wile-E-Coyote humour as a group of knights try in vain to break into a witch’s castle. After a number of confrontational methods fail, a lone squire gets into the castle simply by knocking on the door. Now tell me that isn’t funny?
		Fire Ball (Taiwan, 2005) Directed by Wang Toon - Wang Film Production North American premiere
As WFAC curator Joseph Chen explained prior to the showing, this screening was important for a number of reasons not limited to the fact that this was Fire Ball’s North American debut. One of the reasons Chen, whose roots can be traced back through Taiwan, chose this was not just because it was Taiwanese but also because it is the first original production for Taiwan-based Wang Studios. Wang has helped produce over 3300 episodes of series television like American ‘toons The Smurfs and G.I. Joe and has contributed to a further 70 motion pictures, but this is the first time they’ve produced something entirely in-house. A trend, as Chen observes, that is being picked up on in animation studios throughout Taiwan and South Korea.
Fire Ball is based on an ancient Chinese legend akin to the myth of the Holy Grail in western culture. It’s about a monk whose quest for sacred truths, written by Buddha himself, takes him on a trek into the west and India. I’m not sure to what degree the original legend included impudent monkeys, pig-like men and half-lady-half-spiders, but then again the literary Seven Dwarfs didn’t have names until Disney christened them.
The previously mentioned Monkey (only name given) causes some trouble in Heaven and is sentenced to help the monk and his associates on their quest. The troupe gets stuck in a mountain range full of active volcanoes and the only way through is to quiet the landscape with the powerful artifact known as the Iron Fan. Monkey tries every devious trick he can to procure the Iron Fan, but the princess that guards it is having spells cast against her so that evil forces may procure her power. Monkey also sparks an adversarial rivalry with the Princess’ son Red, but they all have to work together to ensure that the Iron Fan doesn’t fall into the wrong hands and the monk’s quest will continue.
Fire Ball has a very obvious western-influenced look to it; comparisons in some of the character design to some of the Saturday morning cartoons in your fondest memory will be apparent. What’s unquestionably Asian is the story, the mythology, and the sense of humour. At 90 minutes long, Fire Ball was one of the more lengthy offerings of the festival, but it was so tightly paced you barely noticed. It’s delightful in a way that Disney cartoons used to be, as it takes you from smile to outright belly laugh depending on the scene. There’s something very familiar to it, but at the same time it is probably as different from anything else you’ve seen; the subject matter’s been covered in anime like Dragonball Z, but you’ve never seen it like this before. This is just an utterly charming film and a marvelous effort from Wang Studios.
Saturday, November 18, 2006 by Adam A. Donaldson
		Yonna in the Solitary Fortress (Japan, 2006) Directed by Kengo Takeuchi - Comix Wave
Another CG short but a little more ambiguous in terms of plotting and moral than Negadon, with a style that is unmistakably in the mold of Final Fantasy combining medieval settings and circumstances with futuristic technology. Yonna is some kind of witch; her exact story is unexplained, but she’s been holed up in a giant fortress in the middle of nowhere with her brother as guardian protecting her from the outside world. A government agent tries to free her for some nefarious or not so nefarious reasons, but that’s something else that wasn’t entirely explained in a thorough way. The film was rather static despite the high level of technical sophistication in the animation. There are some cool effects with animals that get turned into flower petals, but for pure Japanese charm the edge belongs to Negadon.
		A Miracle from the Stars (Japan, 2006) Directed by Toshizaku Matsubara and Akio Watanabe - Comix Wave
This is another Japanese effort, but a decidedly non-CG short that is more the classical form of anime. It combines a tale of adolescent dreaming and romance with an odd kind of government conspiracy tale as a school girl named Kouze chases falling stars across the countryside and encounters a boy named Ginga who’s spent his life in some kind of space suit. Ginga is being used by some government men in black to make contact with some alien ship, but Kouze teaches him that it’s wrong to have destiny thrust upon you and to spend your life in a rubber suit when neither is your choice. Strong classical anime sensibilities help sell this film as well as its space age spin on the teen angst romance—My So Called Life with government agents and starships.
		Negadon: The Monster From Mars (Japan, 2005) Directed by Jun Awazu - Comix Wave
One of a scant few CG entries into the festival, this production from Japan manages to combine War of the Worlds and Destroy All Monsters into a thrilling and action-packed half hour. Director Jun Awazu does not go for either end of the extremes when it comes to the animation by not making things either too stylistic or realistic. The result is something that probably feels quite natural to video game fans; anyone high enough was probably checking the floor for their controller. The production is both familiar and inventive; giant robots versus giant aliens after all is a staple of Japanese cinema with international appeal, but you’d have to be made of stone to enjoy it.
		Pettson and Findus: Pettson’s Promise (Denmark, 2005) Directed by Anders Sørensen and Jørgen Lerdam - Film A/S Canadian premiere
With this film I was able to give my literacy reflex a break as this Danish production was dubbed in English. Now I’m not one of those people who complains bitterly about subtitles and about how I “don’t go to the movies to read.” But I must say that after spending most of the afternoon having to follow both a visual and written plot the break was much appreciated. Coupled with the fact that this was a Christmas-themed movie on the same day as the Kitchener Santa Claus Parade, Pettson and Findus was a double delight.
Pettson is an inventor who lives on a rural farm and Findus is his cat, naturally a talking cat that finds himself getting into the occasional sticky wicket. Findus hears some local youngsters talking about Tomte (AKA Scandanvian Santa) and wonders to Pettson why Tomte has never visited them. Pettson and Findus undergo the Danish tradition of writing out a wish list and leaving it under a small pile of snow balls over a lit candle. The candle melts the snow overnight and when you find your list gone in the morning you know that Tomte has collected it.
For Tomte, Findus leaves three wishes: a second ski (he already has one), a chance to meet Tomte on Christmas Eve, and a third wish to be named later. Pettson, knowing that Findus has his heart set particularly on wish number two, begins plotting out how to have a mechanical Tomte greet Findus on Christmas Eve since a visit from the real Tomte is extremely improbable. Naturally, a number of Christmas follies follow as Findus mistakes Pettson’s top secret construction of the mechanical Tomte as slight against him, and the troublemaking neighbour Gustofsson paints Pettson into a corner by promising that the inventor can carve 100 wooden Tomte’s for the local bizarre in time for Christmas.
Pettson’s Promise is classic Christmas mirth making. Not only do directors Anders Sørensen and Jørgen Lerdam hit all the well-known Christmas-special standards, but speaking as someone not of the culture, it provided a unique insight into another nationality’s Christmas celebrations. The film also has great humour and one-liners, like when Findus compares inventing to lying or when he and Pettson encounter a bored forest warden. (“The forest never runs off.”) There’s also some great stuff with the hens that also live on the farm and the creatures that Findus identifies as Muckles, little mice-sized imps that steal small knick-knack who Pettson thinks are a figment of Findus’ overactive imagination.
The animation style is typically European with a stylish and highly detailed art direction. This is a gem for the young and the young at heart that needs no translation.
		Fimfárum 2 (Czech Republic, 2006) Directed by Jan Balej , Vlasta Pospíšilová, Aurel Klimt, and Bretislav Pojar - MAUR Film North American premiere
A fimfarum is both the name for a magical cane and a book of fairy tale-like stories, stories like quartet of tales presented here in this stop-motion effort from the Czech Republic. Fimfarum 2 was made by Jan Balej, Vlasta Pospíšilová, Aurel Klimt, and Bretislav Pojar who were all protégés of Jan Werich. It was originally made for Czech TV, but the WFAC is now one of only two venues to play the film on the big screen, the other being a festival in London.
First was “Uncle, Why is the Sea Salty?” about twin brothers—one rich, one poor— and what happens when the poor one tricks the Devil out of a magic grinder that can provide anything and the envy it engenders in the rich brother as he watches his sibling spread the wealth. “Three Sisters One Ring” follows three married sisters as they bet each other that they can make their husband look the most foolish in order to win a ruby ring. Thirdly was the “Hunchbacks of Damascus”, about three hunchback sword smiths who find themselves thrown out of Damascus only to end up having a series of misadventures in Baghdad. Finally came “Tom Thumb”, a little boy born so small he was the size of a thumb and the story of how he grew up to become an emissary for the King with the help of some magical boots.
While not as sophisticated technically as big budget stop-motion fare like Corpse Bride or Wallace and Gromit, Fimfarum is short on neither magic nor charisma. It is not uniformly one type of stop motion either, as it plays with 2-D cut-outs and backgrounds and 3-D figurines and puppets. The stories each have there own simple lessons and contain enough funny bits to keep the older kids well entertained despite cultural and language barriers. The directors really did do an excellent job with this film because you can really sense the love and craftsmanship in the details that even the biggest budget can’t even buy.
		Prince Vladimir (Russia, 2006) Directed by Yuri Kulakov - Studio Solnechny Dom Canadian premiere
While Russia has an animation history as lengthy as any other, it hasn’t gotten much exposure outside its borders, and like the country itself, the industry faced huge changes and funding issues following the collapse of the Soviet Union. But the business recovered, and in the wake of increased Russian nationalism, the government-owned studio Solnechny Dom has produced this tale of Prince Vladimir, a hero of ancient Russian folklore, myth, and history.
Prince Vladimir, for those that don’t know, is pretty much the Russian equivalent to England’s King Arthur; he’s frequently seen as the man that Christianized Russia and united the Slavic tribes under his rule. He was the ruler of Kiev, guardian of the Russian frontier, and was known for his generous manner. The movie Vladimir isn’t that different, but his tale is spiced up with evil sorcerers, precocious children, a Russian rock soundtrack, and enough high-octane action to make Jerry Bruckheimer run for cover. The film follows Vladimir as an evil druid sorcerer plots to have him and his brothers war on each other to weaken the country’s forces and how Vladimir rises to the occasion and defeats evil and unites his people. Director Yuri Kulakov also leaves it open for a sequel with a convenient “Part 1” tag in the opening.
Like Fire Ball, the makers of Prince Vladimir have adopted a western aesthetic but have turned it around to tell a tale unique to the nationality. The storytelling is straight from the Disney school of myth-making, while Kulakov and his team use the clean lines and strong tone that is typical of the work of An American Tale and Land Before Time director Don Bluth. I think the film will appeal to kids who like animated action/adventures and the Lord of the Rings movies; it somehow, inexplicably, combines some intense, although gore-less, action with kid-friendly humour, which often involves two dim-witted soldiers.
Sunday, November 19, 2006 by Stephen J. Noel
		Dobrynia Nikitich (Russia, 2006) Directed by Ilya Maximov - Melnitsa Studio North American premiere
Director Ilya Maksimov had festival goers roaring with laughter as they watched his second full-length feature. Dobrinya Nikitich is the hero in a Russian folk tale whose name strikes terror into the hearts of his enemies. Among these are a money lender of ridiculous proportion, a band of Mongol bandits, and a dim-wiitted witch who lives in a magical swamp hut standing on enormous chicken legs. Counted among Dobrinya’s friends are a three-headed dragon and a young messenger who needs to impress his girlfriend.
Unfortunately, the women in the flick are not exactly portrayed as role models of strength. Nikitich had only three: Dobrynis’s demanding wife, the impetuous niece of the Duke, and a witch with gambling problems. The morale of the tale seemed to be that gambling can put you into debt with unscrupulous characters who can force their will on you, which is a pretty good lesson to think about, but I also thought the film could have had at least one woman who contributed something postive to the story’s resolution.
Still, the film kept mostly everyone in the theatre hooting for most of its 65 minutes. The aesthetic was definitely Western, but I enjoyed listening to the soundtrack in original Russian. The film also featured two or three upbeat, highly stylized, but short contemporary songs that enhanced the energy of the story. I believe Maksimov is a director that will continue to produce delightful animated films in the years to come.
		The Legend of Shangri-La (China, 2006) Directed by Chen Ming - IDMT World premiere
This simple but effective stop-motion animation appears to consist of beautiful chinese-style paintings as backgrounds for hinge-jointed, two-dimensional cut-outs. In fact, the entire piece is digital. A magic fish is released and takes a poor, overtaxed fisherman to a secret valley where peach trees bloom all year long. The people living there have been out of touch with the fisherman’s world for hundreds of years. They are generous and happy. The man eats his fill for several days then hurries home to “put everthing in order“ before a planned returned. Naturally, he finds his way home but not back to valley again. He is saved from a lashing by a nobleman who takes up his cause. Together they search for the valley of eternal spring, for the rest of the rich man’s life and the remainder of this fifteen-minute short.
		The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (Japan, 2006) Directed by Mamoru Hosoda - Madhouse North American premiere
At 98 minutes, The Girl Who Leapt Through Time was the festival’s longest running feature film. Festival promoters were very pleased to present this film, not only because the screening marked the film’s North American premiere, but also because the cast and crew poured themselves into the making of this piece. They also have a good degree of “animation pedigree,“ which is to say that collectively, they have plenty of talent and experience. Additionally, let’s not forget that it’s just a very entertaining movie.
One or two apects of the film reminded me of Groundhog Day, one of my favourites. However, instead of an obnoxious weatherman trying to score, we have a high school senior who can take short backward leaps in time to fine tune, or at least try to fine tune, small events in the mundane and not so mundane affairs of one day. Originally, this was a short story by Yasutaka Tsutsui that was later scripted for live action; Director Mamoru Hosoda successfully uses animation’s power to realize the tale’s full potential for the screen .
Leaping through time is not something easily accomplished. Typically, Makoto needs to build up speed and take a grand leap (of faith, if you will). When she lands in the past, it is usually most unceremoniously, head over heels in a roll and a crash, and to the total chagrin of the people she is with. It is all very befitting, given her propensity to be rammy in general. In the end, she gets it right and saves the day, herself, and her friends.
The Girl Who Leapt Through Time kept me thoroughly engaged. I revelled in the possibilities contained in a single day and marvelled at yet another wonderful adaptation from literature. Don’t miss this one.
		Sorry, I Love You (South Korea, 2006) Directed by Various - G&G Production Co. Ltd. World premiere
This piece was a study for a twenty-hour series, yet to be completed, commissioned by a Japanese television network. This animated series will fill a gap between the two arcs of an already completed live-action Asian soap opera. Curator Chen was very excited about the significance of this project; he said it signals a maturing of the genre and its acceptance as a medium for adults.
I’m not a fan of soap operas nor have I developed an appreciation for the over-the-top drama preferred by Asian soap opera enthusiasts; however, I am convinced that the new series will do extremely well in its target market because, regardless of their age, Asians are much more predisposed towards the consumption of animation, unlike like their Western counterparts. They should gobble this one up.
Except for the Asian flavour, nothing about Sorry, I Love You is like I’ve seen. The imagery is very soft and the body proportions are completely unexaggerated for a change, but the characters’ lives are totally messed up, and the producers heap on emotion like there’s no tomorrow. This must surely be some kind of spectacle for the typically reserved Japanese, but without the magic or robots that many people have come to expect. Chen might be right; in any case, the success or failure of this series will be something to measure.

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