Tag: New York International Children’s Film Festival

NYICFF 2013: Ernest & Celestine w/ Benjamin Renner

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narutaki For some reason, I thought this was an Oscar nominee but it no. Still, after seeing it I indeed think it should have been a nominee, maybe it will be for 2013! Ernest & Celestine is a French/Belgian animation based on the characters from the Belgian book series of the same name. We learned from one of the directors after the film that the screenwriter spun a different tale than that of the books.

The gorgeous animation is filled with life. The film moves seamlessly between whimsical watercolor and graphic flair. It very much feels like an animated storybook which you can fall right into.

Ernest & Celestine is a tale of creativity, mayhem, and friendship. In a world where mice live below the surface and bears rule the outside world, there was a little mouse named Celestine who was a burgeoning artist and wasn’t afraid of bears despite everything she had been taught. Ernest was a lonely musician who just didn’t fit in with bear society. These two lost souls found each other on a fateful night sparking an enduring companionship.

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NYICFF 2012: Le Tableau, Paint Me a Movie

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Le Tableau was my final film for the festival, luckily this screening also featured the director and writer in a little Q&A after. This film while still for children is a little more mature in its execution. The animation and colors of a painterly quality will strike you first and captivate you, indeed it was the reason I wanted to see the film in the first place. Happily there is also an under current of independence and creating your own destiny making it more than just pretty to look at.

Le Tableau means The Painting, so that is where our story begins, inside an unfinished painting. A three caste systems has developed, diving those who are fully painted, those only half-painted, and those that remain sketches. Lola, a Halfie unperturbed by being “incomplete,” decides to journey to find the painter in hopes of helping her friend Claire who is in love with the free-thinking Alldunn Ramo. Ramo joins Lola on her quest as does the Sketchie Plume. Their adventure takes them beyond their painting into the world of the painter, meeting his other creations along the way.

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NYICFF 2012: A Monster in Paris, The Voice of an Angel

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First, I really must thank the New York International Children’s Film Festival for bringing one of my wish list movies of 2011 to the event this year. This French CGI production played in 3D and was the opening night feature to kick off the nearly month-long festival. This comedy adventure features wonderful animation, great music, and charm on all levels.

Our story begins in a flooded Paris of the early 20th century, giving a magnificent backdrop to the tale. When Emile and Raoul make a delivery to a scientist’s lab, they take the time to explore. Their experiments accidentally create a giant insect that promptly escapes into the city. With the pompous police commissioner in pursuit, the now infamous “Monster of Paris” meets young singer Lucille who takes him in after recognizing his noble heart.

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