Part of our 2nd Annual Animation Festival!

A cat and a mouse carry on a dysfunctional relationship in a futuristic landscape. A Chinese monk sets out on foot with a tiger during the Tang dynasty and happens upon the giant Buddhas of Bamiyan. Two bluecollar workers dissect the meaning of "normal" life, as the world crumbles around them. A box of matches succumb, to their detriment, to the appeal of a cigarette. Four people recount their various encounters—triumphant or terrifying, euphoric or down-to-earth-- with an unforgettable rite of passage.

The World According to Shorts presents a selection of recent award-winning animated short films from the world’s most renowned festivals, including Cannes, Berlin, Annecy, Clermont-Ferrand and others.

Titles include:

Deconstruction Workers - Kajsa Naess, Norway, 6 min. Two construction workers have a serious discussion about life.

Average 40 Matches - Burkay Dogan, Turkey, 3 min. A group of matchsticks work together to satisfy their craving for cigarettes.

Bamiyan - Patrick Pleutin, France, 15 min. In 632 AD, the Chinese monk Xuanzang discovers the statues representing Buddha in the valley of Bamiyan, Afghanistan. In 2008, the children of the valley tell us the myths about the tragic destiny of these statues destroyed by the Taliban in 2001.

Please Say Something - David O'Reilly, Ireland/Germany, 10 min. A troubled relationship between a cat and a mouse set in the distant future. Golden Bear, Berlin International Film Festival

Flatlife - Jonas Geirnaert, Belgium, 11 min. Hanging a painting on the wall, building a house of cards, doing the laundry, and watching TV: the most innocent and harmless actions in the daily lives of four ordinary people. But of all the bad luck, these people had to live next to each other. Jury Prize, Cannes Film Festival

She Who Measures - Veljko Popovic, Croatia, 7 min. Are we truly free? Are our desires truly our own or merely imposed products of the society we live in? Special mention, Animafest Croatia; Winner, FIPRESCI Award, Annecy

Home Road Movies - Robert Bradbrook, United Kingdom, 12 min. "No longer restricted to Zone 3 of the local buses, our dad took us on motoring holidays of a lifetime." The real-life story of a shy and awkward father who desperately wanted the family car to make him a better parent. Jury Award, Aspen Shortsfest; Grand Prize, Ottawa International Animation Festival; Best Animated Short, Toronto Worldwide Short Film Festival; Best Animated Short, Cleveland Film Festival

The Tale of How - The Blackheart Gang, South Africa, 4 min. The story of the Piranha birds--or Dodos, as they would be known to you. Special Distinction Award, Annecy Film Festival; Canal+ Award, Clermont-Ferrand Short Film Festival

Never Like the First Time! - Jonas Odell, Sweden, 14 min. An animated film based on documentary interviews, where four people get to tell the story of their first time. Golden Bear, Berlin International Film Festival

Ticket Price: $3 per film

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Festival Pass: $15 (10 admissions to any of the films in Proctors Animation Festival!)