The newest film from Oscar-nominated Nora Twomey and Cartoon Saloon, based on the Newbery-winning children’s book, this animated film follows a young boy who runs away to an island to rescue and befriend a young dragon. A Netflix release. Director Nora Twomey and screenwriter Meg LaFauve in-person.
Europe
Oink
When 9-year-old Babs receives a pig named Oink as a present from her grandfather, she convinces her parents to keep it under the condition that Oink follows a puppy training. But her parents are not the biggest threat to Oink because actually her grandfather is secretly taking part in the sausage competition organized by The Society for Meat Products from Fresh Pigs…
Titina
Italian airship engineer Umberto Nobile enjoys a quiet life with his beloved dog Titina, who charmed him into rescuing her from the streets of Rome. One day, Norwegian explorer superstar Roald Amundsen contacts him and orders an airship to conquer The North Pole. Nobile seizes the opportunity to go down in history. He brings Titina along, and the unlikely trio sets out on an expedition to the last undiscovered place on Earth. Their quest is successful but, in the aftermath, the two men start to quarrel over the glory … Through the eyes of the four-legged celebrity Titina, (re)discover a true story of triumph and defeat. Director Kajsa Næss in-person.
Little Nicolas
Somewhere between Montmartre and Saint-Germain-des-Prés, Jean-Jacques Sempé and René Goscinny lean over a large white sheet of paper and bring to life a mischievous and endearing boy, Little Nicolas. From schoolyard games and fights to summer camp prank and camaraderie, Nicolas lives a merry and enriching childhood. As the adventures of Nicolas and his friends unfold, the boy makes his way into his creators’ workshop and light-heartedly questions them. Sempé and Goscinny will recount the story of their friendship, career, and reveal a childhood filled with hopes and dreams.
Zog
A true global fan favorite, ZOG won Audience Prizes in three different countries in 2019 (including, most recently, the USA’s New York International Children’s Film Festival). The latest from Magic Light Pictures – the Oscar nominated creators of THE GRUFFALO, ROOM ON THE BROOM and REVOLTING RHYMES – Zog tells the crowd-pleasing, family-friendly story of a young fire breather and his first days at Dragon School.
Animation Is Film is proud to present the Los Angeles premiere of ZOG.
See the short, introduced by director Max Lang, and stay for a Q+A!
Klaus
When Jesper (Jason Schwartzman) distinguishes himself as the postal academy’s worst student, he is stationed on a frozen island above the Arctic Circle, where the feuding locals hardly exchange words let alone letters. Jesper is about to give up when he finds an ally in local teacher Alva (Rashida Jones), and discovers Klaus (Oscar winner J.K. Simmons), a mysterious carpenter who lives alone in a cabin full of handmade toys. These unlikely friendships return laughter to Smeerensburg, forging a new legacy of generous neighbors, magical lore and stockings hung by the chimney with care.
An animated holiday comedy directed by Despicable Me co-creator Sergio Pablos, KLAUS co-stars Joan Cusack, Will Sasso and Norm Macdonald.
I Lost My Body
In a Parisian laboratory, a severed hand escapes its unhappy fate and sets out to reconnect with its body in this Cannes Critics’ Week selection. During a hair-raising escapade across the city, the extremity fends off pigeons and rats alike to reunite with pizza boy Naoufel. Its memories of Naoufel and his love for librarian Gabrielle may provide answers about what caused the hand’s separation, and a poetic backdrop for a possible reunion between the three. Based on the novel “Happy Hand” by Academy Award® nominee Guillaume Laurant (Amelie)
The Swallows of Kabul
Critically embraced after its Un Certain Regard screening in Cannes, Zabou Breitman and Eléa Gobbé-Mévellec’s harrowing story of two Afghani couples living under the shadow of the Taliban (based on the novel by Yasmina Khadra) has enjoyed universal acclaim on the festival circuit.
Summer 1998 – Kabul under Taliban rule. Zunaira and Mohsen are young and in love. Despite the daily violence and misery, they hope for a better future. One day, a foolish gesture causes life to take an irrevocable turn.
Son of the White Mare
In 1981, the animated film SON OF THE WHITE MARE (FEHÉRLÓFIA) burst onto the scene, astounding audiences with its explosion of color and unparalleled creativity and artistry. Based on Hungarian myth, it tells the story of three brothers born to a mythical white mare, tasked with journeying to the Underworld to save their kingdom from a horde of dragons. A bedtime story on acid, nothing is as it seems in this intensely original world. While it has been compared to other giants of animation, such as BELLADONNA OF SADNESS and FANTASTIC PLANET, this twisted fairytale has a kaleidoscopic style completely its own, resplendent with neon-drenched dreamscapes, and mythical gods and monsters that fluidly shape-shift before our eyes.
Widely unavailable since its original release, Arbelos Films commissioned a team of over twenty artists to breathe new life into the animation, restoring the eye-popping colors from the original camera negative, in a project years in the making. Director and animation legend Marcell Jankovics supervised the entire process, and the film is once again ready to take its rightful place as one of the greatest animated features of all time. (Lisa Dreyer, Fantastic Fest)
Marona’s Fantastic Tale
With the release of her Cristal Award-winning Crulic – The Path to Beyond in 2011, Anca Damian’s presence was announced like a lightning bolt. Since then, the subjects of her films – the narratives and the documentaries, the live-action as well as the animation – are united by their abiding senses of empathy and humanity. Her latest takes these traits and casts them upon a traveler of the four-legged variety.
Marona is a mixed-breed Labrador whose life leaves deep traces among the humans she encounters. After an accident, she reflects on all the homes and different experiences she’s had. As Marona’s memory journeys into the past, her unfailing empathy and love brings lightness and innocence into each of her owners’ lives, in this beautiful and deeply emotional story of an average dog and her extraordinary life.