Online catalogue

Sometimes we laugh so hard it’s almost chilling. Other times we laugh so hard our bones may rattle. Somewhere in between is a specific sub-genre of humour very popular in animation. We could call it morbid slapstick comedy. This kind of humour is popular not only among filmmakers (in particular, European) but also among viewers. It has many nuances. It’s often clad in absurdity we know from (among others) films of Finno-Ugric provenance (for instance In the Air and Sticky Ends). Other times it offers pure joy from straightforward, naively presented morbidity (The Clod, KJFG No. 5 and The God), but it can also be ironic and parodic (Bluebarry) or black (Happy End). In any case, the authors usually explore serious topics – often death – which they lighten up with specific exaggeration. This approach is typical and unmistakeable for specific authors (you can see for yourselves in A Single Life, Where My Home Is? and The Banker). Ultimately, this sub-genre can also include an animated pun, as is the case of the programme’s opening film – Walt Disney’s timeless, adorably morbid film with breathtaking animation, The Skeleton Dance.

There are often situations we can’t control in life. The possibilities for an ordinary person to react are limited. Paradoxically, one effective psychological defence is joy. Even in the most terrifying moments, humanity has been able to laugh at its fate and animators have been proving this for decades.

This paradox is most noticeable in anti-war films. During the Second World War, laughter, or perhaps ridicule, was used as a weapon. In the United States, it was Donald Duck who fought against the Nazis, in Prague it was the Springman. A more cunning strategy (i.e. ignoring everything) was used by the heroes of the Cold War in a brilliant piece by the National Film Board.

Military conflicts often trigger migration and it’s often hard to deal with the consequences thereof without losing one’s detached view. But there are naturally many problems that need to be properly ridiculed. Sometimes, you just live in the wrong place (at the end of the world, in the wrong country etc.) or you’re just trying to take a nice picture. In this case, relief from the senselessness of the world, from its small-mindedness and dullness can be provided only by Dadaism from the Pythonesquely subversive Terry Gilliam.

Bugs Bunny was partly inspired by a rabbit from Disney’s The Tortoise and the Hare, because all Hollywood cartoons were influenced by Disney. But when Bugs appears in a cartoon based on the same fable, it is more cynical and violent than Disney ever was.

Directors at Warner Bros. had more influence over their cartoons than Disney allowed. Bob Clampett’s A Gruesome Twosome and Friz Freleng’s Putty Tat Trouble created very different cartoons with the same writer, Warren Foster, and the same story of two cats trying to catch Tweety.

Other studios tried to copy Looney Tunes. Voice actor Mel Blanc and director Frank Tashlin made one of the best imitations, The Fox and the Grapes, whose story of repeated failure was itself copied by Warner Bros. in the Road Runner series.

Even United Productions of America, which made Warner Bros. look old-fashioned with ambitious films like Rooty Toot Toot, was influenced by the stylised movement and period flavour of Chuck Jones’s The Dover Boys.

Finally, three different approaches to Daffy Duck: An antagonist in You Ought to Be in Pictures, a World War II hero in Plane Daffy, and in Duck Amuck, a cinema everyman tormented by his creator.

Fairy-tales are excellent source material for parodies in every art form. Not even animated films, which automatically equal fairy-tales in the eyes of many, could miss out on the opportunity to revise fairy-tale motifs. It’s actually an immensely popular pastime enjoyed by new as well as established directors. The first example in our programme is from the 1930s and fairy-tales still weren’t spared.

They’re full of allegories and many serious analyses try to interpret them. They often invite filmmakers to desecrate them. Subliminal, brutal and often sexual motifs hidden in fairy-tales provoke filmmakers, who – in a spirit of postmodernism – use these very motifs in their reinterpretations. Sometimes, with notorious stories, they just increase the pace, other times they play with colours and Little Red Riding Hood becomes a murderous monster or at least a karate master. How would fairy-tale characters end up if they grew old? Not even this is taboo for animators. As we’re in animation and the magical world of fairy-tales, black humour can always get blacker.

The fount of material to be ridiculed will not dry up as there are still plenty of ‘serious’ animated fairy-tales and animators from ‘the other side’ are already sharpening their teeth. One thing is for sure – it won't be pretty. A fairy-tale can turn into horror with a wave of a magic wand.

Whether the protagonists are people, birds, scorpions, little kitties, polar bears or Bambi, this block of short films will show you that the number of limbs is of no consequence. We all share something that we humans often forget and that usually manifests itself in the most absurd situations possible. These can include a calm session on an electric line disrupted by a guileless bird flying by in the Oscar-winning film For the Birds or moments of desperation when one is trying to quit smoking according to instructions by Bill Plympton. Also birthday celebrations, just like Bob’s celebration in the classic film by Alison Snowden and David Fine, or receiving a gift in the form of an adorable kitten capable of driving the recipient crazy. Even the improbable friendship between Boston and Chester by Grant Kolton counts, just like a clash with the ‘success at all costs’ culture in Marion Ichard’s tile shop. The pressing presence of what we share can also be felt in telephone conversations by Thomas Kneffel and the everydayness of Yes-People from Iceland. The inhabitants of a British zoo (voiced by real people describing their homes) interviewed in Aardman Animations’ brilliant mockumentary also know what it’s about. If you still don’t know what we’re talking about, perhaps you’ll find a clue in Bambi Meets Godzilla or in an account of a wedding by Joanna Quinn. Still in the dark? We’re talking about… life. You probably expected something more, right? Tough luck. There’s nothing you can do.

The most prominent personality of Studio Prometheus, the Ostrava branch of Krátký Film Studio, was graphic artist and director Ilja Novák. This year’s festival theme of Animation & Humour represents an ideal opportunity to screen his films. Almost all of them aim to make the viewers laugh. But, as is typical for Czech animation, they’re not straightforward slapstick. In addition to using ubiquitous irony, Novák’s films move along two often intersecting lines. The first represents black humour, as we can see in Merry Christmas, or Charlie’s Winter Adventure. The second represents satire, very concrete and biting for its time. Perfect examples are His Excellency and What is Your Opinion, Baron?, a film which was heavily censored. In addition to harsh criticism, Novák’s films stand out from the rest of domestic production thanks to their artistic expression. Although very different in stylisation, in some moments Novák’s films are reminiscent of animation used by Igor Ševčík and Pavel Koutský. Novák doesn’t work in one layer, but his movements and editing using image transformations are typical for total animation. To re-introduce the slightly forgotten work of the Ostrava native, we will screen Kanga, Roo and Dingo the Dog and a wacky series ignored by television channels, Lux and Delux.

Each cartoon in this programme highlights an aspect of animated filmmaking. But first, Porky’s Preview shows what cartoons would be like with an amateur in charge of all departments.

Director Friz Freleng, a master of animation timing, gets laughs in Little Red Riding Rabbit just by having Bugs Bunny open doors in synchronisation with music. Music is even more important in Mouse-Warming, where Carl Stalling’s song quotations convey the emotions of silent characters.

Frank Tashlin shows off his mastery of camera angles in Porky Pig’s Feat, and in Claws for Alarm, backgrounds designed by Maurice Noble enhance comedy and horror.

In Draftee Daffy, notice how different Daffy looks and moves depending on which animator is drawing him. Russian Rhapsody showcases character design, with dozens of unique gremlins based on the Warner Bros. studio staff, and the avant-garde Now Hear This is a showcase for sound designer Treg Brown.

Tedd Pierce shows in High Diving Hare that a writer can spin endless variations on the same basic joke. Last but not least, voice actor Mel Blanc voices four completely distinct characters in the very first Foghorn Leghorn cartoon.

Kyle, Kenny, Cartman and Stan, a beloved and condemned group of boys from an elementary school in a small redneck town in America, have a problem. They want to see the latest film by their favourite Canadian comedians Terrance and Phillip, but the film is R-rated. But that’s actually not the problem, as they do manage to see it. The problem is that the film teaches them the most vulgar swearwords the inhabitants of South Park can imagine. And children can’t be permitted to swear! American parents are outraged and a war breaks out between the US and Canada. The boys set out on a rescue mission. But freeing Terrance and Phillip from captivity won’t be easy. The boys must face their bigoted parents (led by the Mothers Against Canada movement, formed by Kyle’s mum), but Satan also gets a word in, as he sees the international conflict as a fulfilled prophecy of the Apocalypse and an opportunity to seize power over the world. But to his misfortune, he gets together with the constantly horny Saddam Hussein, so it won’t be easy for him either. As is customary, South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut offends everyone and even ridicules itself. But it makes no bones about various social issues of (more than) American society and almost paradoxically ends with a (hopefully serious!) message of love and respect. Oh, and they kill Kenny. Bastards. 

The festival theme of Animation & Humour naturally has to take us deep underwater to Bikini Bottom. As a reminder of the legendary series created by Stephen Hillenburg for Nickelodeon, we chose the first feature film based on the series. It was made 18 years ago, but its energy, humour and superb animation are still on point. It’s still great entertainment for multiple age groups and still the best feature version of the genius surrounding the tirelessly optimistic and workaholic yellow sea sponge, SpongeBob SquarePants. The film’s open-minded humour oscillates on the axis of infantile – Dada – extremely clever. And as a bonus, there is David Hasselhoff himself!

Trouble starts when Plankton enacts a plan to discredit his business nemesis Mr. Krabs, steal the Krabby Patty secret formula and take over the world by stealing King Neptune’s crown and framing Mr. Krabs for the crime. SpongeBob and Patrick team up to retrieve the crown from Shell City to save Mr. Krabs from Neptune’s wrath and their world from Plankton’s rule.

Two different personalities, two different fates and a distance of half the world separates and connects the two clay heroes of Mary and Max, a film which tells the story of an unlikely friendship between an eight-year-old girl called Mary, who lives in Australia, and a forty-four-year-old New Yorker called Max. Mary loves sweet condensed milk and chocolate, but most of all she longs for a real friend. Max Horowitz has Asperger’s syndrome and difficulties with communication; he also loves chocolate, his fish Henry, his parrot and his cat. They exchange letters and share their thoughts, observations, impressions and problems and the viewers watch their bond grow. This slightly bittersweet stop-motion comedy is a thought-provoking intimate story which, much like Elliot’s previous film, Harvie Krumpet (2003), openly breaks social barriers and taboos. The elaborate film and its scenes plotted in detail boast dynamic cinematography by Gerald Thompson, so a comparison with live-action film is in order. The film’s world premiere occurred at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival opening ceremony.