Athleticus: Synchronised Trampoline
Film Tag: Animation
The Last Day of Autumn
There’s a mad dash to wrap the season, and these creatures devise some clever way to race to the finish.
The Kite
The sky’s the limit for one boy’s connection to his grandfather in the lofty, lovely spirit of The Kite.
My Life in Versailles
Life in a castle sounds like a piece of cake, but not for Violette, who must move into one with her uncle, the caretaker of the Palace of Versailles.
Trude’s Flatmate
Trude’s Flatmate is a monster. Literally. And chaos is in store when she tries to keep its sugar fix in check.
Nuit Cherie
Follow the stories of an insomniac bear and monkey on a mission (did we mention the mini Yeti?) in this vividly animated and wonderfully wacky tale.
The Snail and the Whale
The latest from NYICFF alum Magic Light Pictures (Zog) rolls out gigantic waves of big-screen beauty and charming voicing by Sally Hawkins. When a tiny snail longs to see the world, it hitches a ride onto a great big, grey-blue humpback whale. Together they go on an amazing, gloriously animated journey, past icebergs and volcanoes, sharks and penguins, and marvel at the vast wonders of the world, and size seems like strength to the snail. But when the whale is beached in a bay, it’s the tiny snail who just might save the day.
Overboard!
Kooky Chameleon and cross-eyed Kiwi won’t let a little judgement stop them from making it onto the rescue ark.
Om Nom Nom…
After a hungry dinosaur discovers a wiggly egg in the forest and devours it, strange rumblings in his tummy quickly follow!
Celebrate Aardman! A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon
Go all-out for Aardman’s big screen excitement with a NYICFF exclusive theatrical presentation of Shaun the Sheep’s latest feature adventure (premiering on Netflix February 14th), alongside new and classic Aardman shorts! In Farmageddon, an alien named LU-LA crash-lands near Mossy Bottom Farm. Her magical powers, irrepressible mischief and galactic sized burps soon have Shaun the Sheep and his flock enchanted. But when Shaun takes his new extraterrestrial friend on the road to find her lost spaceship, little does he know that a sinister alien-hunting agency is on their trail. Now Shaun and the flock must avert Farmageddon before it’s too late.
Hilda
She’s clever, kind, witty—and rocks a pair of red boots like nobody’s business. Hilda is back, rescuing elves, dodging trolls, and exploring Trolberg’s strange history and stranger personalities. The BAFTA award-winning Netflix Original series inspired by Luke Pearson’s hugely popular graphic novels returns to NYICFF with the world premiere of Season Two. Join us for sneak peeks of “Troll Circle” and “The Witch,” two truly enchanting adventures!
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Magic Boy
Anime? Check. Disney-inspired cute critters? Check. Beautiful colors? Do you even have to ask?! Our Festival Flashback is a groundbreaker: the first-ever anime film released in the US (from renowned Toei Studios), and quite possibly the inspiration for the lovably goofy ninjas-in-training of Naruto. Step back in time and follow Sasuke’s adventures from the very beginning!
This program is supported by:
SamSam
It’s never too early to find your superpower in SamSam’s fantastical world, and he can’t wait to discover his. Thanks to Mega, the mysterious new kid, SamSam finally uncovers an “anti-monster” power! Let’s hope it’s the real thing: SamSam is about to find himself in a whopper of a showdown, battling to keep the planet laughing—and happy.
This program is supported by:
Children of the Sea
Adapted from the acclaimed manga comes this visually dazzling, mind-bending aquatic mystery. Ruka’s dad is so absorbed in his studies at the aquarium that he hardly notices when she befriends Umi and Sora. Like Ruka, the mysterious duo has the unique ability to hear the call of the sea and its endangered creatures. Together, can they save them?
*Depicts alcoholic parent
This program is supported by:
Moominvalley
Whether you’re already mad for Moomins or you’ve yet to meet these hilarious and cuddly creatures, you can catch their newest capers as NYICFF once again offers an exclusive look at the latest goings-on in Moominvalley. Tove Jansson’s beloved books come to glorious life with a new take and season of their fairy-world tales and some of the biggest British stars voicing our favorite Moominfamily.
Fritzi: A Revolutionary Tale
Summer 1989, East Germany. While her best friend, Sophie, visits Hungary, twelve-year-old Fritzi lovingly watches her dog, Sputnik. When she discovers the public protests stirring around her, she realizes that Sophie’s family may have left for more than a vacation. Fritzi’s moved to action in this riveting tale of the fall of the Berlin Wall and the people—like Fritzi—brave enough to change the world.
*Includes tense moments with armed border guards
On-Gaku: Our Sound
From grunge to genius, On-Gaku turns it up to eleven musically and visually! Kenji and his two buddies are considered the toughs in their high school. Only clever Aya knows their too-cool-for-school attitude is a total act, until a bass guitar unexpectedly ends up in Kenji’s hands. With its deadpan humor, fresh animation style, and upending of the high school musical genre, there’s no wonder this film won the Ottawa Int’l Animation Festival’s top prize.
*Some mature language and threat of menace
This program is supported by:
The Prince’s Voyage
Celebrated filmmaker Jean-François Laguionie (The Painting, NYICFF 2012) returns to the Festival with yet another beautifully animated, mesmerizing film. When a monkey prince washes ashore, Tom and his scientist parents take him in. It turns out everyone has a lot to learn, and it’s not all scientific, in a tale of intrigue and understanding, with plenty of echoes of classic primate films.
This program is supported by:
Fritzi: A Revolutionary Tale
Summer 1989, East Germany. While her best friend, Sophie, visits Hungary, twelve-year-old Fritzi lovingly watches her dog, Sputnik. When she discovers the public protests stirring around her, she realizes that Sophie’s family may have left for more than a vacation. Fritzi’s moved to action in this riveting tale of the fall of the Berlin Wall and the people—like Fritzi—brave enough to change the world.
*Includes tense moments with armed border guards
Klaus
When Jesper (Jason Schwartzman) distinguishes himself as the postal academy’s worst student, he is stationed on a frozen island above the Arctic Circle, where the feuding locals hardly exchange words let alone letters. Jesper is about to give up when he finds an ally in local teacher Alva (Rashida Jones), and discovers Klaus (J.K. Simmons), a mysterious carpenter who lives alone in a cabin full of handmade toys. These unlikely friendships return laughter to Smeerensburg, forging a new legacy of generous neighbors, magical lore and stockings hung by the chimney with care.
Klaus
When Jesper (Jason Schwartzman) distinguishes himself as the postal academy’s worst student, he is stationed on a frozen island above the Arctic Circle, where the feuding locals hardly exchange words let alone letters. Jesper is about to give up when he finds an ally in local teacher Alva (Rashida Jones), and discovers Klaus (J.K. Simmons), a mysterious carpenter who lives alone in a cabin full of handmade toys. These unlikely friendships return laughter to Smeerensburg, forging a new legacy of generous neighbors, magical lore and stockings hung by the chimney with care.
Abominable
DreamWorks Animation and Pearl Studio’s co-production Abominable takes audiences on an epic 2,000-mile adventure from the streets of a Chinese city to the breathtaking Himalayan snowscapes.
When teenage Yi (Chloe Bennet, Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.) encounters a young Yeti on the roof of her apartment building, she and her friends, Jin (Tenzing Norgay Trainor) and Peng (Albert Tsai), name him “Everest” and embark on an epic quest to reunite the magical creature with his family at the highest point on Earth.
But the trio of friends will have to stay one-step ahead of Burnish (Eddie Izzard), a wealthy man intent on capturing a Yeti, and zoologist Dr. Zara (Sarah Paulson) to help Everest get home.
Abominable
DreamWorks Animation and Pearl Studio’s co-production Abominable takes audiences on an epic 2,000-mile adventure from the streets of a Chinese city to the breathtaking Himalayan snowscapes.
When teenage Yi (Chloe Bennet, Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.) encounters a young Yeti on the roof of her apartment building, she and her friends, Jin (Tenzing Norgay Trainor) and Peng (Albert Tsai), name him “Everest” and embark on an epic quest to reunite the magical creature with his family at the highest point on Earth.
But the trio of friends will have to stay one-step ahead of Burnish (Eddie Izzard), a wealthy man intent on capturing a Yeti, and zoologist Dr. Zara (Sarah Paulson) to help Everest get home.
Meet the Small Potatoes
Minuscule: Valley of the Lost Ants
Humorously bug-eyed animated insects battle it out within lush live action backgrounds in this enormously inventive comic adventure from award-winning animators Thomas Szabo and Hélène Giraud. The unique combination of real life landscapes — a micro-world shot in extreme and stunning close-up — and wonderfully animated creepy-crawlies engaging in playful antics, will leave the viewer both dazzled and amused. As the film opens, a montage of breathtaking forest landscapes zooms in on an abandoned picnic just as a gang of black ants is moving in to steal a coveted treasure: a tin box filled with sugar cubes. But before they can get away with the loot, a newly-born ladybug gets trapped inside the box, and is soon spirited away as the ants try to transport their prize across the woods toward their colony. When a rival clan of powerful red warrior ants appears on the scene, the resourceful ladybug comes to the aid of the black ants, and a furious chase ensues where everyday objects become creative tools in the battle. The audience is treated to Q-tips javelins, dollar bill paper airplanes, and a high-speed river race on an old soda can…along with humorous references to Star Wars, Close Encounters and even a shot-for-shot recreation of a scene from Hitchcock’s Psycho (not scary, we promise!). Based on the popular short animated series, Minuscule opened #1 at the French box office and is making its North American premiere at NYICFF.
Leitmotif
Fluid, expressive animation and a great jazz soundtrack bring Triplets of Belleville immediately to mind, as a lonely old musician tickles the ivories with his cat on his lap.
Prayers for Peace
This poignant animated memoir reveals the final thoughts of the artist’s younger brother, who was killed in the current conflict in Iraq. Drawn with pastels on a slate chalkboard, the materials used to create the film are a metaphor for the impermanence of life.
Dripped
A fantastic imagining of how Jackson Pollack came upon his “drip” and action-painting style: through devouring (literally) all the styles of the modern past.