Animation for the Real World

Hero Image

Title

Animation for the Real World

Byline

By Ben Elliott

March 29th, 2024

Body Copy

Cartoons are for kids. It’s a stigma that has stuck to an entire genre of filmmaking for over 100 years.

Just like some people refuse to watch black and white or foreign movies (yes, they’re out there), others write off animated movies without watching a frame. It’s their loss since animation has been home to some of the most stunning, urgent filmmaking throughout the history of cinema.

Image Block

Rich Text

Animation can offer you an escape from reality, often through breathtaking works of kinetic art. You can experience visual poetry in Walt Disney’s Fantasia, an ode to the marriage of sight and sound. You can visit Rene Laloux’s Fantastic Planet for an allegory of oppression that takes you to a psychedelic alien world. Or press pause on any frame of the Spiderverse movies to soak in a densely packed work of pop art.

But filmmakers can also use animation to process reality, finding innovative ways to illustrate the emotional fallout of traumatic events. Marjane Satrapi depicts her coming of age during the Iranian Revolution in Persepolis. Ari Folman explored his PTSD following his involvement in the Sabra and Shatila massacre in Waltz with Bashir. We’ve even seen animated documentaries in recent years, like Keith Maitland’s Tower or Jonas Poher Rasmussen’s Flee.

Image Block

Body 3

One of the best films to encapsulate both ends of this spectrum is Sylvain Chomet’s The Triplets of Belleville, which plays for free at The Triplex this Saturday morning. An expressive and surreal celebration of the music, art, and architecture of the 30s and 40s (with nods to Jaques Tati in particular), Chomet also fills his cels with grime, crime, and shadows.

The result is a story of perseverance that is deeply recognizable. Chomet’s animation melds dizzying joy with disappointment and fear in the story of a grandmother who refuses to give up on her grandson after he’s abducted by a gang of criminals. It’s a potent reminder that while, yes, animated movies are an excellent way to distract small children, they’re also one of the best ways to depict the highs and lows of life within a single frame.

Marketing Signup

Bump

Footer