[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XyuqtOuljSw]
I was first in line for leftover tickets for the showing of 2008′s Oscar-nominated Animated Shorts at the Salem Film Festival yesterday at 5:15 — and I knew the crowd was going to be packed. I had arrived about 4:35, expecting that half of Salem might decide to take their kids to the show.
I was wrong.
Much of Salem is a kid at heart — or at least appreciates a showing of short-form animation.The crowd was mostly older people, and they were starting to get a little ornery as they waited at the ticket counter.
A couple of hundred people with VIP passes and pre-bought tickets were lining up by 4:45. By 5:00, we were supposed to have a chance to buy tickets then. 5:11 trickles along… and I am getting nervous… and I’m wondering if I’m going to have to see the Inuit film instead… and kapow! Ticket time!
For tickets in the front row.
Seriously, we could see the pixels on the Salem Majestic’s gorgeous new screen.
What is it about the Academy that makes them always pick the short about the little old man who is alone and thoughtful and looking back on his life with nostalgia, sadness, and even hope?
This year’s Harvey Krumpet was a French entry called La Maison en Petit Cubes. It concerned, you guessed it, an old man who looks back on his life with nostalgia, sadness, and even hope. The turn is that he’s living in a house that is flooding, so he dons SCUBA gear and goes swimming with his memories. Very Jungian. It’s a very endearing character study.
But it is not Oktapodi, the best two-minute animation I’ve seen. Oktapodi is a love story of two Octopi set on the Greek island of Santorini. You can watch it all over the place, including on YouTube.
Second-runner-up in my book goes to This Way Up, a story of twin morticians who bungle the transportation of a coffin to its final resting place. It’s gorgeous, it’s hilarious, and it makes some bad turns in the last few minutes. It’s also on YouTube.
So why even go to the Salem Cinema and shoulder my way through throngs of retirees to see animated shorts when I can see them all on YouTube?
Well, if you haven’t been down there yet, you should definitely go. Owner Loretta Miles has decided on a feel that blends the artistry of early 20th century cinemas — art nouveau details in the glasswork–with the high-tech screening capabilities you’d expect at most cineplexes. The approach is a little strange, and completely post-modern in the way it borrows almost willy-nilly from periods past.
But the whole works, and the new theater’s a knockout.
As for Oscar-animated shorts, you can still see them all online. I kinda wish I had seen the Inuit film.
