MANILA, PHILIPPINES – Three animation films topbill this week’s Cine Europa to bring Europe closer to the hearts of children and their families. But beyond the colorful images of Jacob, Mimmi and the talking dogs (Latvia/Poland), Buñuel in the Labyrinth of the turtles (Spain) and My Life as a Zucchini (Switzerland), are real life values everyone can learn and emulate from.
And why not? Animation films have drawn much inspiration from Europe.
Do you know that Charles-Émile Reynaud invented the praxinoscope in 1876? This device has 12 rectangular mirrors which produced a semblance of fluid animation through mirrors reflecting images of the pictures placed opposite on the inner wall of the cylinder.
Reynaud gave over 12,800 shows to half a million visitors at the Musée Grévin in Paris from 1892 to 1900. Georges Méliès’ early fantasy and trick films used stop trick effects and painted props against painted backgrounds. Among the first to use animation in films was J Stuart Blackton while French Émile Cohl developed the first animated film using traditional animation methods.
The animation industry has its roots in Europe. No wonder this year, Cine Europa decided to highlight animation films to give the much-needed entertainment to children of all ages.
The Instituto Cervantes in Manila has selected “Buñuel in the Labyrinth of the Turtles” which is a 2018 Spanish biographical animated film directed by Salvador Simó. It is based on the novel Buñuel en el laberinto de las tortugas by Fermin Solis. It is a great narrative essaying the story of Luis Buñuel, a film director creating the 1933 film “Land without Bread” focused on Las Hurdes, one of the poorest regions of Spain. The transition between lively cartoons and real life images in the story is a unique style of Buñuel that makes his audience connect to the actual situation in the film.
From Switzerland came its entry, “My Life as a Courgette” also known as “My Life as a Zucchini”, Directed by Claude Barras, it is a story of “Courgette” who was befriended by a kind police officer, Raymond, after his mother’s death. Courgette was accompanied by his friend Raymond to a foster home. Courgette struggled at first but with the help of Raymond and his newfound friends, Courgette eventually learned to trust, find true love and a new family of his own.
“Jacob, Mimmi and the Talking Dog”, a co-production of Latvia and Poland, is a summer adventure story about two kids who spent summer in city suburb, where together with talking dogs they rescued the romantic wooden-house neighborhood from reconstruction. The film serves as a good inspiration and reminder for all about caring for the environment. Edmunds Jansons directed the film.
Cine Europa
Cine Europa is Europe’s biggest and most exciting film festival which is ongoing until the end of this month. Nineteen films from 20 European countries are accessible right at the flick of your fingertips upon signing up at www.cineeuropaph.com.
This year’s films come from Festival Scope, the EU’s library of quality films, which complements films from the European embassies in Manila. The films are presented by the EU Delegation, the European Union member states embassies and Embassy of Switzerland, cultural institutes including Goethe-Institut, Instituto Cervantes Manila, Philippine-Italian Association. Cine Europa continues with its educational component as professional speakers are expected to share and engage with Filipino cinephiles in various subjects ranging from directing, producing and promoting film masterpieces.
This coming week will bring to your reach films such as King of the Belgians (Belgium), All these Sleepless Nights (Poland), Before the Frost (Denmark), Vice of Hope (Italy), Mellow Mud (Latvia), Tel Aviv on Fire (Belgium, France and Luxembourg), The Conductor (Netherlands), The Line (Sweden), She is the Other Gaze (Austria) and Lady Time (Finland), Sweethearts (Germany), Let the Girls Play (France), Women on the Run (Czech Republic) and And then we Danced (Sweden).
Head on to your laptops, sign up on www.cineeuropaph.com and stay tuned for updates and trivia games at Cine Europa’s social media channels in Facebook, Twitter & Instagram.
