CFM News
36 international films will participate in the Festival's Competitive
Section
ANIMACOR will render tribute to the Russian animation genius Alexander
Petrov Córdoba,
Alexandr Petrov will visit ANIMACOR'07 as a guest of honor, a man whose
filmography mixes the most state of the art techniques in present day
animation and the most romantic painting traditions, thus creating films
that might be considered true works of art in motion. This will be one of
the most outstanding parallel sections, along with that of the screening of
the films that won Cartoon d'Or awards--the most prestigious European awards
in this genre. In addition, the powerful Competitive Section will include 36
films from numerous countries and an International Jury made up of
prestigious professionals.
Petrov: 'Romantic Realism' in cartoons
Aleksander Petrov's style is what makes him unique, above and beyond his
stories, which are occasionally qualified as 'romantic realism' for his
imaginative way of representing his landscapes, human characters and
animals. As a technique, he often uses his fingers instead of traditional
brushes, and he places his oil paints on a glass medium.
His most well-known work, an adaptation of the Hemmingway classic The Old
Man and the Sea, is the story of the friendship between a boy and a
tormented old fisherman, who one day decides to go out to sea in search of a
large fish to return his self-confidence. This huge work, made up of unique
frames taken from approximately 29 thousand oil paintings that Petrov
painted for more than 10 years of his life, won him an Oscar award.
His most well-known work, an adaptation of the Hemmingway classic The Old
Man and the Sea, is the story of the friendship between a boy and a
tormented old fisherman, who one day decides to go out to sea in search of a
large fish to return his self-confidence. This huge work, made up of unique
frames taken from approximately 29 thousand oil paintings that Petrov
painted for more than 10 years of his life, won him an Oscar award.
In the retrospective put on by ANIMACOR'07, the following films will be
screened: The Dream of a Ridiculous Man (1992), based on the
Dostoyevsky story; The Mermaid (1997); Cow (1989); the Oscar
award-winning The Old Man and the Sea (1999); and the most recent
My Love (2006).
Nominated several times for an Oscar Award (1990, 1998), which he finally
won in the year 2000, Petrov has won numerous awards at international
festivals such as Annecy (Audience Award and Grand Prize, 2000), and the
Berlin Film Festival (nominated for the Golden Bear in 1977 and winner of a
Special Mention in 1990).
In addition taking his honorary Carrasquito (the festival trophy), Petrov
will give a class on Saturday, November 10 at the Andalusia Film Archives at
5:00 pm.
The ANIMACOR'07 Competitive Section will have 4 full-length films, 6 series,
and 26 short films from a wide variety of countries such as: Russia, Japan,
Poland, Germany, Brazil, Belgium, Canada, France, Hungry, Portugal, the
United Kingdom, and Spain.
As far as the International Jury is concerned, there will be renowned
professionals from the sector, such as: Pedro Delgado, professor, director,
and screenwriter of the Goya nominated film Puerta del tiempo (2002), in
which the designs of Antonio Mingote appeared; Carlos Varela, a professional
with a lengthy career in animation studios such as Merlín Animación (Phantomcat,
Sabrina, Pippy Langstrump, Famous Fred...) and the winner of a Goya for Best
Animation Film along with José Luis Feito for Goomer (1999); the
London-based Argentinean animator and illustrator Oscar Grillo, (who will
present an exhibit as part of the festival's parallel activities); the
British animator from Beryl Productions International Joanna Quinn, whose
extensive filmography includes productions for advertising, film and
television; and the journalist Pilar Ortega Espejo, who is currently in
charge of Co-production Coordination for Canal Sur Television and who was
nominated at the 2003 Goya Awards for the animated film La Profecía de la
Alhambra. Cartoon d'Or: The delights of European Animation
image.net
In collaboration with the Cartoon Association, ANIMACOR'07 is putting
together a Special Session program with the films winning the Cartoon d'Or
awards, the only European animation award reserved for the winners of the
ten best festivals of the genre. What the films to be screened will have in
common is that they have won awards at the Annecy festival, films such as:
Peter & the Wolf (Poland and the UK) by Suzie Templeton; The Pearce Sisters
(United Kingdom) directed by Luis Cook and produced by the prestigious
Aardman Animations studio; and t.o.m. by Tom Brown and Daniel Benjamin Gray
(United Kingdom).