Animation

Coming out is one of the most terrifyingly great things anyone on the LGBTQIA+ spectrum can do in their life. Terrifying because you are exposing yourself in such a massively vulnerable way that there is really no way to head anything off at the pass – you simply have to Continue Reading

SNAPSHOTWakiki island is in peril by the destructive powers of the evil tiki god Tori, only one turtle is brave enough to stop him: Speedy the Turtle! (synopsis courtesy YouTube) What is it with Big Bads and their love of world-enslaving bling? They crave the stuff and it’s always up Continue Reading

At the heart of every great movie sits a sparkling, literate, narratively-rich screenplay. It’s not the only thing that at play, of course, but a movie without inspired writing might look flashy and beautifully-produced but will always feel more than a little hollow and insubstantial. Proof of how important superbly-rendered Continue Reading

Animated short films are a delight in so many ways. They demand of their creators an elegant economy of storytelling, a knack for near-instant fully-realised characterisation and a visual style which can set the scene quickly and keep building until a not-far-off finale. These five French animated shorts, accessed via Continue Reading

SNAPSHOTImagine a world where a band of tiny musicians follow you and play a soundtrack for your life – communicating your emotions, fears and hopes. In this world lives elderly Vernon; a lonely man whose crippling shyness causes his orchestral musicians to perform terribly out of tune. When Vernon and Continue Reading

You may not think that a story of horrifically neglectful parents, starving children (emotionally and physically) and gothic hilarity told through vividly manic animation where the colours and sheer force of imagination are in perfect sync would be a good idea or come even remotely close to working, but it Continue Reading

If there is one thing that animation powerhouse Pixar is justifiably famous for, it’s the ability to invest its animated features with a metric ton of meaning and emotion in every frame. Films like the Toy Story franchise, UP, Inside Out are so well-loved and highly-regarded not just because they Continue Reading

With COVID-19 cutting a swathe through just about everything worldwide, it’s no surprise that cinema is being as affected as anything else. In just one day, one of my favourite cinema chains temporarily closed, the Sydney Film Festival was cancelled, the French Film Festival was postponed and my other favourite Continue Reading