Latest news and stories about animation in Portugal for expats and residents.
The exhibition showcasing part of the collection of the late Portuguese animation film critic and promoter ends next Saturday, the 11th, at the National Society of Fine Arts. The collection of original drawings was built through the network of friendships and encounters he created with great names in world animation.
The animated film “Marcel and Monsieur Pagnol” guides us through the life and work of the 20th-century French teacher, writer, playwright, and filmmaker.
The animated film “Marcel and Monsieur Pagnol” guides us through the life and work of the 20th-century French teacher, writer, playwright, and filmmaker.
French director Sylvain Chomet, known for 'The Triplets of Belleville' and 'The Illusionist', explores the life of legendary filmmaker Marcel Pagnol in his latest animated feature, 'Marcel and Monsieur Pagnol'. The film attempts to bridge the gap between Pagnol's classic cinematic legacy and contemporary audiences through a blend of period-accurate animation and an imaginative dialogue between the young and adult versions of the author. While the film serves as a heartfelt tribute to Pagnol's work, its somewhat academic and occasionally pompous tone struggles to fully revitalise his legacy for modern viewers.
Six Portuguese films or films with national co-production, including “Porque Hoje é Sábado” and “Filha da Água”, will be at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival in France this June, the organization announced today.
Porque Hoje é Sábado, by Alice Eça Guimarães, is one of six works of national production or co-production selected for the French festival, which takes place in June.
At Monstra, the award for best international short film went to the Brazilian short 'Safo', by Rossana Urbes. The Lisbon animation festival ends this Sunday.
Marta Reis Andrade's short film was chosen by the jury as a “visually stunning fable”. Brazilian and French entries took home the major international awards.
It remains fashionable to denigrate the Hollywood Oscars simply because they are... the Hollywood Oscars. Regardless, and without favouring such prejudice, it is true that sometimes, beyond the celebration of the winners, the Oscars lead to the 'erasure' of some of those who did not receive any distinction. It would be a shame if this happened to Little Amélie, a co-production between France and Belgium, directed by the French duo Maïlys Vallade and Liane-Cho Han - the film received a nomination for Best Animated Feature, a category won by Popverse. The original title, Amélie et la Métaphysique des Tubes, refers to the book by Belgian writer Amélie Nothomb. The 'tubes' serve as a symbolic designation for human beings born with major organic limitations, to the point of being described as entities that are nothing more than a vegetative existence made of 'tubes' through which food circulates. Such is little Amélie, born into a Belgian family living in the city of Kobe, Japan. With fascinating precocity, the narrator develops a peculiar notion of God, leading her to the disarming logical conclusion that she herself is God. Served by a design of classic formal sobriety, Little Amélie is a film that knows how to avoid the moralism that sometimes contaminates narratives of this genre, ultimately establishing itself as a true moral tale. It didn't win an Oscar, but it deserves to be discovered.
A story between our planet and a distant galaxy featuring cute aliens, “Elio”, which premiered in Portuguese cinemas last summer, is nominated for the Oscar for Best Animated Feature. Mary Alice Drumm, the film's producer, spoke to Expresso in London.
For the first time, the festival features a competitive section dedicated to medium-length films. There is an exhibition based on the collection of promoter Vasco Granja and an animation initiative in support of Palestine.
The feature film competition is just the most visible section of a festival with nearly 500 films in the programme, as well as meetings, exhibitions, installations, masterclasses, theatre plays and the Monstrinha.
The Monstra Festival will propose “a transversal reflection on the planet” this year, according to the organisers. It will also feature a competitive section dedicated to medium-length films for the first time.
The 25th edition takes place at Cinema São Jorge, the Portuguese Cinematheque, and Cinema City Alvalade in Lisbon.
The Monstra animation festival returns this year with a programme featuring more than 500 animated works.
