Carnival of Animals
An animated erotic fantasy inspired by the music of Camille Saint Saëns.
Michaela Pavlatova’s Unwavering Animated Oeuvre
75 minutes
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Though Czech filmmaker Michaela Pavlátová graduated in animation from Prague’s Academy of Arts, Architecture, and Design in 1987, she did so unintentionally. She’d wanted to enroll in painting, but the class was full. So she started animation and soon fell in love with the medium’s creativity and its God-like feeling of control.
Pavlátová’s work depicts life and relationships through dark humor and a fresh sense of irony, never shying away from controversial subjects. Her career so far has been remarkable, with her short Words, Words, Words (1991) nominated for an Academy Award, Repete (1995) receiving a Golden Bear, and Tram (2012) winning the Annecy Cristal. It was about time we invited her to Amsterdam. For this retrospective, Pavlátová will dive into her oeuvre, discussing and showing her unwaveringly awesome body of work.
This program screened as part of KLIK! Amsterdam Animation Festival 2014
Showing in this program
Forever and Ever
Managing to combine animation and documentary footage, Forever and Ever sees a real wedding framed by animated 'episodes' which reflect the relationships between people - especially, of course, those between men and women.
Laila
Laila is a girl like you or me - episodes from her life.
Repete
Our everyday routine is boring, but boringly safe. We long for change, yet lack the courage to precipitate that change. When it does finally occur, we transform the change into a new routine. And so the wheels turn, and the machine goes on...
This Could Be Me
A short self-portrait, This Could Be Me introduces Pavlátová's interest in combining animation and documentary live-action work.
Tram
It’s the humdrum daily routine for Tram’s conductress. As every morning, men get on the tram to go to work, one after another, all similar, quiet, grey, apathetic. And yet, on that day, following the jolts and the road’s vibrations, to the rhythm of the tickets inserted in the ticket-stamping machine, the conductress gets turned on and the vehicle gets erotic. The tram conductress’ desire turns the reality into a surrealistic and phallic fantasy. She then takes a ride on the passengers’ giant and blushing penises. Music maestro!
Uncles and Aunts II
'Uncles and Aunts' is a snapshot of uncles and aunts and various other relations - about their lives and the environment in which they live. Part of a series by Paul Driessen.
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Words, Words, Words
Michaela Pavlátová's Oscar-nominated short takes place in a café where all sorts of people sit at tables and talk. They communicate not with words but via an animated 'language' of their own - and thus we can eavesdrop easily on their conversations, and those who might have been strangers are no longer so.
