This was posted on Last Exit to Nowhere's Facebook page and after watching it I felt it was definitely something to share! Directed and animated by Paul Berry, this animation is full of German Expressionist influences and it's delightfully creepy.
"The Sandman is a highly stylised puppet-animation, a beautifully crafted, but ultimately horrible interpretation of an old European folktale...Using the hallmarks of Expressionist cinema, director Paul Berry creates a darkly atmospheric film that evokes and preys on our childhood fears and nightmares...The Sandman was nominated for an Oscar in 1992, and won the Best Short Film award at Annecy in 1993." - Caren Willig, BFI Screen Online
What a find, Molly :D And can I expect more 'geek-chic' t-shirts from you come September if you've been perusing Last Exit To Nowhere? Really enjoyed this - and did you notice the 'Hitchcock Zoom'? There is something special about stop-motion when it combines with stories dealing with childhood fears (Coraline etc.) - there is no better medium for tapping into our oldest anxieties.
ReplyDeleteOf course you can! I'm expecting at least 3 more additions by the time I'm back! :D That zoom was great and really unexpected, as was the gruesome ending! I'm not sure what it is that makes the stop motion so effective, maybe it's the fact that the models are all physically real and doll-like.
ReplyDeleteAlso, the sandman reminded me of the stop motion host from Grizzly Tales for Gruesome Kids, great stuff! :D