November | Animation Nation
IN COLLABORATION WITH
This month’s collection, in collaboration with Guru Studio, features all things animation! Showcasing animated works from film, TV, and video games from various and independent creators, these picks illustrate how animation has become an innovative form of storytelling – with Canadian creatives at the forefront.
Content Warning:
Some of the projects included in this collection deal with topics that may be distressing. Viewer discretion is advised – please check ratings and warnings on individual selections before engaging.
Angakusajaujuq: The
Shaman’s Apprentice
Director: Zacharias Kunuk
A young shaman must face her first test—a trip underground to visit Kannaaluk, The One Below, who holds the answers to why a community member has become ill. Facing dark spirits and physical challenges, she must trust her mentor’s teachings and learn to control her fear.
Ballerina
Directors: Éric Summer & Éric Warin
Best friends Félicie and Victor hatch a plan to escape from their rural orphanage in 19th-century France. Félicie dreams of becoming a ballerina, while Victor wants to use his brainpower to invent things. After busting out, Félicie makes her way to the Paris Opera where she joins a class of highly trained dancers who are auditioning for the lead in a production of “The Nutcracker.”
*Also available on Crave and Netflix
Bao
Director: Domee Shi
A Chinese-Canadian woman suffering from empty nest syndrome gets a second shot at motherhood when one of her handmade dumplings comes alive.
Homeschooled
Creators: Nicholas Herd, Michael McDonald, & Joe Bluhm
Freebird is the coming-of-age story of Jon, a boy with Down Syndrome who learns to navigate the world with a loving mother, an absent father, a classroom bully, and a life-long crush. In just five minutes, we watch 45 years of his life flash by.
Heavy Metal
Director: Gerald Potterton
Based on the fantastical illustrated magazine, Heavy Metal, producer Ivan Reitman enlists the help of some of Hollywood’s animation masters to create the otherworldly tale of a glowing green orb from outer space that spreads destruction throughout the galaxy.
In the Shadow of the
Pines
Director: Anne Koizumi
An animated short documentary about a difficult father-daughter relationship. Drawing on childhood memories, Anne Koizumi, the filmmaker, explores her upbringing with her Japanese immigrant dad, who was also the janitor at the elementary school she attended.
Jett: The Far Shore +
Given Time
Creators: Superbrothers & Pine Scented
Embark on an interstellar trip and deploy to a mythic ocean planet in a low-flying jett in this cinematic science fiction action adventure with immersive sim elements from Superbrothers, known for Sword & Sworcery EP.
*Also available on PlayStation and Epic Games
True and the Rainbow
Kingdom
Produced by: Guru Studio
Parents and their kids love watching the hit series True and the Rainbow Kingdom as it introduces them to basic breath work and the concepts behind mindful behaviour. Led by a smart, fearless and empathetic heroine named True and her funny, stressed out sidekick Bartleby the cat, they work together to save Rainbow City – a magical universe where everything has a soul and a personality!
Your Hand in Mine
Director: Sheryl Au
Set across three separate timelines, this animated short follows a couple as they struggle to openly love each other.
Zeb’s Spider
Directors: Alicia Eisen & Sophie Jarvis
When the superstitious Zeb finds a spider in her apartment, she must do everything in her power to keep the unwanted guest’s appetite satisfied, or risk being eaten herself. This stop-motion cautionary tale examines the discomfort of the human experience when a superstitious outlook becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.