6:1
Checkers may seem a game of child’s play, but can a losing cat nab a comeback?
Film Tag: Animation
Lost & Found
One softie might have to toughen up and risk coming completely unravelled to maintain a tight-knit friendship in this Oscar-longlisted short.
Peas
“P” is for persistence, and powering through, and peas in this well-balanced meal time tale.
Piggy
Will Piggy give in? Delight in Google Spotlight Stories’ new level of interaction in this Looney Tunes-style homage to classical music spoofs and deliciously naughty fun!
And The Moon Stands Still
A night creature tries to steal off with a village’s glimmer of hope. Fortunately, its steadfast moon is not one to wane.
Brooklyn Breeze
NYC’s biggest borough gets the Busby Berkeley treatment in this charmingly upbeat ode to industrial Brooklyn that will have you tapping your steel-capped toes!
Humus
In a magical laboratory in the woods, a gardener tries to school his young and wayward apprentice about the power of nature.
Mi Abuelita
Like everything Abuelita does, her tamales are filled with love, especially when her granddaughter gets to help out in the kitchen.
Jonas and the Sea
At the seaside, Jonas dreams of a life among the fish and constructs bizarre aquatic contraptions to realize the impossible.
The Basket
A devoted daughter works hard to earn enough to repair her father’s watch in this busy city short on quick fixes.
Fox & Hare: Birthday
Fox dreams of giving Hare the most exquisite birthday ever, but will a few pesky neighbors spoil his plans?
Heads Together
Three very different kids, all friends, find out what it truly means to walk a day in each other’s shoes,…and legs, and torsos in this hilarious International Emmy and 2017 NYICFF Grand Prize- winning film.
Emily
Blooming with artful animation and wistful storytelling, Emily was spotlighted as the Netherlands’ entry for Oscar consideration.
Saturday’s Apartment
Banging, jumping, wailing, pounding—noisy neighbor mayhem rules the day until this ultimately loveable bunch of apartment dwellers find a way to hammer it out together.
Raccoon and the Light
Nighttime is a breeze for a nocturnal creature, but a spotlight shines in more ways than one in this Student Academy Award-Winner.
Mr. Paper Goes Out for a Walk
With trusty scissors in hand, Mister Paper makes choice cuts to craft his ideal world.
1 Meter/Hour
French snails get all due respect, especially this troupe and their sublime, slow grooves as overseen by renowned choreographer Philippe Decouflé.
Small Spark
You’ve heard of night owls and bookworms? Well both perfectly describe this mouse, who must find a way to continue his exciting bedtime reading when it’s lights out.
Belly Flop
One girl is determined to make a very big splash, but will she have the buoyant courage to pull it off?
Hors Piste
Crevasse-kicking laughs are in store when an alpine ski rescue goes way, way off track.
Toy House
How is it that the ones you love so dear can also be so eerie?
Okko’s Inn
Bright-eyed Okko has joined her grandmother at their family-run, hot springs inn, rolling up her sleeves to learn the traditional ways. Her way to deal with the recent loss of her parents is to work diligently and think of others instead of herself. She does great, though as a city kid the country creatures make her jumpy, as does a surprising new friend she finds “spirited” in more ways than one. Okko’s Inn beautifully addresses themes of loss, altruism, and love, while offering that—even in the face of challenges—compassion, and delight, can and will abound.
Okko’s Inn hits theaters nationwide on April 22 & 23 in both its Japanese and English versions.
Presented with support from
Penguin Highway
Precocious Aoyama is crazy for science. He calculates the days until he is grown up and keeps a scientific notebook at the ready. He’s got hypotheses and independent variables down pat. But some topics he hasn’t mastered: How do the laws of attraction operate? What is this emerging feeling for his hygienist-turned-tutor? As if puberty isn’t enough of a mystery, he must uncover what’s causing hordes of kawaii penguins to invade his suburban town, with help from the bright girl in his class. A charming tangle of scientific principles, fantastical physics, and baffling hormonal surges, Penguin Highway’s destination is the journey, all right.
Note: Includes tween fixation with and objectification of female anatomy
Note: Includes tween fixation with and objectification of female anatomy
Dilili in Paris
Travel to the bustling cafe culture of Paris in the Belle Epoque with Dilili, a bright young girl with perfect diction, grace, and eagle-eyed smarts as she begins to investigate a nefarious plot by the ominous Master-Men. Together with Orel, a delivery boy who ferries her around jewel-toned Paris as only expert animator (and NYICFF alum and Kirikou creator) Michel Ocelot could conceive, Dilili will stop at nothing until justice is restored. Our supersleuths journey through a turn-of-the-century world so evocative, you just might spot Picasso, Proust, or Marie Curie in the substrates and salons of the city of lights.
Opening Spotlight: Pachamama
Tepulpai’s your average kid—headstrong and a bit naughty. It may seem unusual that he has a pet armadillo and wants to be a shaman, but not if you live in the ancient Peruvian Andes like he and his wise friend Naïra do. The two embark on a young heroes’ quest to locate their community’s stolen treasure, and must confront the Inca and newly arrived Spanish to retain their indigenous ways. With a vibrantly-hued palette and Pre-Colombian soundtrack of ancient flutes and condor wings, Pachamama exuberantly celebrates nature, culture, and community.
The screening on February 24th will be followed by a Q&A with the director Juan Antin
Gordon & Paddy
Gordon is an ace detective, but even he’ll admit he’s ready to hang up his badge. Luckily, he recognizes fresh talent in Paddy, a young rodent wise beyond her years and eager to break the grass—er, glass—ceiling. When Paddy gets the chance to crack the case of the purloined acorns, she’s got a mystery to solve and a slew of woodland creatures’ speculations to manage. This warm and witty police procedural for the junior set shows how generational divides can turn to bridges, and that even baddies have their good sides.
Minuscule: Mandibles From Far Away
“Ladybug, ladybug, fly away home…” the rhyme goes, but try heeding that when you’re a quarter of an inch long and home is 4,000 miles away! When accidentally boxed into a chestnut shipment, the ladybug of Minuscule is inadvertently shipped to a Caribbean isle. Its parents embark on an odyssey to find it while, on the island, beachfront developers are threatening native habitats. A wild ride ensues—it’s a bug-eyed ecological view made more eye-popping as a live-action animation hybrid shot in lush Guadeloupe.
Screenings on Sunday, March 3rd and Sunday, March 10th will be in 3D
Moominvalley
They may hail from faraway Finland, but artist/novelist Tove Jansson’s cuddly, quasi-philosophical, not-quite-hippo creatures have a huge international following and were last seen at NYICFF 2014. This exciting new series uses brand new innovative techniques in 3D CGI, bringing the Moomintroll family to vivid life as they adventure through the mystical islets and fjords of their glacial world. Rosamund Pike leads a top-notch voice cast as Moominmamma, wisely grounding the family’s insatiable curiosity as they seek the shadowy Groke and luminescent Hattifatteners.
Minuscule: Mandibles From Far Away
“Ladybug, ladybug, fly away home…” the rhyme goes, but try heeding that when you’re a quarter of an inch long and home is 4,000 miles away! When accidentally boxed into a chestnut shipment, the ladybug of Minuscule is inadvertently shipped to a Caribbean isle. Its parents embark on an odyssey to find it while, on the island, beachfront developers are threatening native habitats. A wild ride ensues—it’s a bug-eyed ecological view made more eye-popping as a live-action animation hybrid shot in lush Guadeloupe.
Moominvalley
They may hail from faraway Finland, but artist/novelist Tove Jansson’s cuddly, quasi-philosophical, not-quite-hippo creatures have a huge international following and were last seen at NYICFF 2014. This exciting new series uses brand new innovative techniques in 3D CGI, bringing the Moomintroll family to vivid life as they adventure through the mystical islets and fjords of their glacial world. Rosamund Pike leads a top-notch voice cast as Moominmamma, wisely grounding the family’s insatiable curiosity as they seek the shadowy Groke and luminescent Hattifatteners.