Yesterday Shelly and I took full advantage of the first proper bit of summer weather in ages by spending the afternoon in the cinema at the London International Animation Festival at the Curzon Soho. First up was a screening of classic Polish animation, much of which was from the 60's and 70's, with fantastically bonkers soundtracks. Our favourite was 'Little Black Riding Hood', Piotr Dumala's dark and hilarious 1983 take on an already reasonably dark fairy tale.
The Estonian Panorama screening in the evening was even better. While other former Eastern Bloc countries tend to be best known for the animation they produced in the past, Estonian animation studios are making amazing films right now, with the help of the world's most animation-friendly government. The screening gave us a chance to see Mait Laas's entertainingly baffling 'Gene + Ratio' for the second time. I still have no clear idea what it's about, and I'm not sure that he does, but it's a brilliant film. It features a lot of bees, a very rude scene with a cat in a bath and a cast of thousands of frenzied sperm played by matchstick men igniting themselves in their excitement at nearing their target. The other highlight for me was 'Marathon' by Kaspar Jancis, a very funny film about a terrorist entering a marathon and as good an introduction to the Estonian sense of humour as you're likely to find. Mait, Kaspar and fellow animator Priit Tender were there to talk about their work and were as endearingly skew-whiff as their films. The festival is also hosting a great exhibition containing puppets from Estonian films, including the one in the picture up there from the brilliant Rao Heidmets film 'The Pearl Man'. The festival and exhibition both close today so get down there!
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