Film Tag: Animation

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Centerpiece Spotlight: Turning Red

Disney and Pixar’s Turning Red introduces Mei Lee (voice of Rosalie Chiang), a confident, dorky 13-year-old torn between staying her mother’s dutiful daughter and the chaos of adolescence. Her protective, if not slightly overbearing mother, Ming (voice of Sandra Oh), is never far from her daughter—an unfortunate reality for the teenager. And as if changes to her interests, relationships and body weren’t enough, whenever she gets too excited (which is practically ALWAYS), she “poofs” into a giant red panda! Directed by Academy Award® winner Domee Shi (Pixar short Bao) and produced by Lindsey Collins, Turning Red releases on March 11, 2022. 
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Poupelle of Chimney Town

Poupelle of Chimney Town is the story of young Lubicchi living among the thick smoke from the chimneys of his isolated town, yearning to see the “stars” — to know the truth — his father always told him about. One Halloween night he meets Poupelle, a man made of garbage, and together they look to the sky as their adventure begins. Spectacularly beautiful, filled with inspiring performances and splendid music and sound effects, and produced at Tokyo’s famed STUDIO4ºC, Poupelle of Chimney Town brings laughter, tears and joy.
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Moominvalley

Tove Jansson’s delightful universe is back, premiering exclusively at NYICFF with all the Moomincapers you could ever wish for in three new episodes. It’s a battle to decide who’s in charge in Brisk and Breezy when camper and notorious mischief-maker Little My runs Mr. Brisk through a series of tests to prove his mettle. Next, leave it to Moomintroll to get into a muddle inadvertently following valley rogue Stinky down a foul path to thievery, only getting into more rot when trying to make things right. Finally, the Moominfamily must postpone their winter hibernation while Moominmomma (voiced by Rosamund Pike) keeps something under wraps in Winter Secrets.
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To the Bright Side

Hop on this delightful omnibus of a film, composed of seven stunningly animated short films, and you’ll travel to China past and present, urban and rural, in realistic contemporary settings or fantastic mythical realms. Though the protagonists range from a family of rabbits, a boy doing his homework at his parents’ restaurant, or a child and his grandmother in the countryside, all tell a unique stories of love, challenges, and maturing to the beat of your own drum. The distinctive styles of each short equally captivate, beautifully hand illustrated through rich colors, ink painting, paper-cutting, watercolor, collages, and more to create affectionate interpretations of life, love and growth as seen through these gifted Chinese filmmakers’ viewpoints.
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The Ape Star

Though Jonna’s home is filled with wonderful kids and a caring guardian, she can’t help but pin her hopes on one day being adopted. When that long-awaited day finally arrives, she learns that love comes in all shapes, sizes, and, er, creatures…like the enormous ape with the equally enormous heart who wants to take Jonna home. Director Linda Hämback (NYICFF 2019’s Gordon and Paddy) uses her own experience as an adoptee to share this hilarious and moving story through a powerful, nuanced lens. A warm, fuzzy, feel-good tale of love over greed, the joy in the things that make us different, and the life-changing magic of sometimes letting things get a little messy, The Ape Star is sure to win hearts
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The Ape Star

Though Jonna’s home is filled with wonderful kids and a caring guardian, she can’t help but pin her hopes on one day being adopted. When that long-awaited day finally arrives, she learns that love comes in all shapes, sizes, and, er, creatures…like the enormous ape with the equally enormous heart who wants to take Jonna home. Director Linda Hämback (NYICFF 2019’s Gordon and Paddy) uses her own experience as an adoptee to share this hilarious and moving story through a powerful, nuanced lens. A warm, fuzzy, feel-good tale of love over greed, the joy in the things that make us different, and the life-changing magic of sometimes letting things get a little messy, The Ape Star is sure to win hearts.
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I Am What I Am

Prepare yourself for the hallmarks of all the classic genres: I Am What I Am is a buddy film, a road movie, an underdog heartstring-puller, and even a little bit of a romcom. Our hero Gyun is a hard working kid with even harder working parents. While his parents toil away in the big city of Guangzhou, Gyun is left to his own devices in his small village, where he stumbles upon the transfixing Lion Dance Competition. Beneath the extraordinary costume is a powerful girl who gifts him with her stunning headdress and encourages him to pursue his newfound aspirations. Soon, Gyun and his buddies are traversing the enormity of the vast Chinese countryside as their own ragtag troupe. With hard work, athleticism, and a reluctant dance-champ-turned-fishmonger Sifu to coach them, they begin to outwit their competitors by harnessing their perceived weaknesses. The eye-poppingly bold and realistic CG animation that breathes fierce light into this rags to riches story will have you bouncing to the beat of the Lion’s drum.
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SWOP

Based on the beloved, Emmy and NYICFF award-winning short Heads Together, this new series follows three wacky friends Sef, Wesley, and Marjory. One day, they discover an abandoned washing machine with mysterious powers: it lets you swap heads with someone else! This presents the three BFFs with a range of amazing possibilities…and side-splitting challenges. As they take turns trying on each other’s heads, they literally see the world through new eyes. Will their new perspectives help them discover a whole new world of possibilities, or get them into a mess? Well, the sayings tell us there are many sides to every story and two heads are better than one. Run, don’t walk (but please hold onto your head) to the slapstick silliness of SWOP.
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Opening Night: Oink

Fabulously bespectacled nine-year-old Babs has the perfect life in the Netherlands, with parents who see to it that she has a lovely home and only the healthiest vegetarian meals on her plate. But what she really, really wants is a dog to call her own. So when Babs’ grandfather, an American with a curiously rootin tootin’ cowboy accent, suddenly appears on the scene, he just may be the key to her perfect pet. Instead, he finds Oink, a lovable if constantly, er, digesting, pig, whom he gifts to Babs. Yet Babs’ mother is less than thrilled and insists that Oink stays only on the condition he passes a rigorous puppy training program. Add to that her grandfather’s secret nefarious connection to the Sausage King competition organized by The Society for Meat Products from Fresh Pigs, and OINK is full of cheeky humor, porcines behaving badly, and people behaving even worse. It’s an uncannily realistic and genius stop-motion charmer that will have you snorting and cheering.
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Vivo

From Netflix and Sony Pictures Animation—the studio that brought you Oscar® winner Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse and this year’s critically acclaimed blockbuster The Mitchells vs. The Machines—comesVivo, an animated musical adventure featuring all-new songs from Lin-Manuel Miranda, the Tony, Grammy, and Pulitzer Prize-winning creator of Hamilton and In the Heights. Vivo follows a one-of-kind kinkajou (aka a rainforest “honey bear,” voiced by Miranda), who spends his days playing music to the crowds in a lively square with his beloved owner Andrés (Buena Vista Social Club’s Juan de Marcos). Though they may not speak the same language, Vivo and Andrés are the perfect duo through their common love of music. But when tragedy strikes shortly after Andrés receives a letter from the famous Marta Sandoval (three-time Grammy-winning Latin pop legend Gloria Estefan), inviting her old partner to her farewell concert with the hope of reconnecting, it’s up to Vivo to deliver a message that Andrés never could: A love letter to Marta, written long ago, in the form of a song. Yet in order to get to Marta, who lives a world apart, Vivo will need the help of Gabi (newcomer Ynairaly Simo) – an energetic tween who bounces to the beat of her own offbeat drum to fulfill his owner’s wishes. – Netflix
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Vivo Q&A

Join us for a free Q&A featuring Oscar®-nominated director Kirk DeMicco and voice star Ynairaly Simo of Vivo! We’ll discuss the inspiration behind the film, animating different locations, making a musical, and answer your questions!
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Best of the Fest 2021

We’ve tallied the votes, and the results are in. These are the shorts with the highest votes, according to YOU. Watch these Festival favorites before we announce the winners on Monday, March 22.
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The Mitchells vs. the Machines: Sneak Peek + Q&A

Join us for this very special sneak peek of footage and behind the scenes Q&A on March 14 @ 5pm ET Produced by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller (Spider-Man™: Into the Spider-Verse) and directed by Michael Rianda, The Mitchells vs. The Machines is an original animated comedy from Sony Pictures Animation and Netflix about an everyday family’s struggle to relate while technology rises up around the world! When Katie Mitchell (voiced by Abbi Jacobson), a creative outsider, is accepted into the film school of her dreams, her plans to meet “her people” at college are upended when her nature-loving dad Rick (voiced by Danny McBride) determines the whole family should drive Katie to school together and bond as a family one last time.

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The Mitchells vs. The Machines

Produced by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller (Spider-Man™: Into the Spider-Verse) and directed by Michael Rianda, The Mitchells vs. The Machines is an original animated comedy from Sony Pictures Animation and Netflix about an everyday family’s struggle to relate while technology rises up around the world! When Katie Mitchell (voiced by Abbi Jacobson), a creative outsider, is accepted into the film school of her dreams, her plans to meet “her people” at college are upended when her nature-loving dad Rick (voiced by Danny McBride) determines the whole family should drive Katie to school together and bond as a family one last time.
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Devenir

What if becoming doesn’t lead to an end, but instead is a process of being?
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Mother Didn’t Know

Told through exquisitely rendered stop motion, this poetic fable illuminates a path to reconnection for one young girl. 
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Red Rover

Mars rovers of a different kind challenge the local order in this quirky, stop motion sci-fi adventure that spins the term “alien” on its head. 
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Umbrellas

Safe and dry, Kyna has her dad’s love and protection to carry her through…until her dog, Nana, needs a rescue.
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How I Overcame My Fear of Humans

Dédalia the spider dreams of the big city—New York—home to 8 million people. There’s just one little problem: she’s afraid of them! 
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Louis’s Shoes

Louis, 8-and-a-half-years-old and autistic, arrives in his new school prepared to introduce himself.
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a film by m+m

Two wacky wizard friends bump and cruise through a fantastical land, powered by green in more ways than one!
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Colza

Clarence, a precocious young lizard, schemes to steal a plane and take flight while the whole village is distracted by the greatest concert it has ever seen.
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Leaf

A larger-than-life sailor is reminded of home when a passenger’s daughter brings aboard a tiny red leaf, inspiring a grand new journey.
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The Alien Nightmare

Mike, Bob, and Frank land on Earth for a routine scientific exploration, but when strange occurrences pop up, will these creatures from another planet chicken out?
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Athleticus: Sled

Puffins vs. seals. Who will win the big score in this slippy, slidey downhill race?
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Catgot

Colors and sounds share a sonic dance in this enveloping jam for the senses.
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Self Story

The inspiration for Becoming Ourselves: Breaking the Binary and screened at NYICFF 2020, Lou is back navigating the-ever challenging terrain of gender. But with inspiration from acclaimed filmmaker Céline Sciamma, they come into their own.
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Nestor

Out at sea, Nestor is rattled by a lack of stability in this shifting, animated puzzle for the eyes and ears.
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Orgiastic Hyper-Plastic

Buttons and fasteners, toy ponies and kittens, bright action figures and straws that are bitten: these are a few of your favorite things to invite to this lively, stop-motion plastic farewell dance.
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