Viewing: May 31,2024
Join us for a special event screening of an animation masterpiece!
Dark and troubling events force Bill to reckon with the meaning of his life.
In 2012, Don Hertzfeldt seamlessly edited his groundbreaking short film trilogy about a man named Bill into a new animated feature film. Six years in the making, the completed picture was captured entirely in-camera on a 35mm rostrum animation stand. Built in the 1940s and used by Hertzfeldt on every project since 1999, it was one of the last surviving cameras of its kind still operating in the world, indispensable in the creation of the story’s unique images and visual effects. IT’S SUCH A BEAUTIFUL DAY painstakingly blends traditional hand-drawn animation, experimental optical effects, trick photography, and digital hybrids printed out one frame at a time.
The film’s signature “split screen” effect was achieved by photographing the animation through small holes that were positioned beneath the camera lens. One section of the film frame would be individually photographed, the camera’s shutter was then closed and the film rewound, another section of the film frame would be exposed, and the process repeated until a scene was fully composited.
Towards the end of production, the old camera’s motor began to fail and could no longer advance the film properly, riddling the final reels with unintentional light leaks.
Upon its original release in 2012, IT’S SUCH A BEAUTIFUL DAY was listed by many film critics as one of the best films of the year!
The screening will also include Don’s latest animated short film “ME”, as well as a brief on-screen introduction for the films.
Don Hertzfeldt is an American independent filmmaker whose animated films have screened around the world. His work has received two Oscar nominations for Best Animated Short Film, two Sundance Film Festival Grand Prizes for Short Film, a Short Film Palm d’Or nomination at the Cannes Film Festival, and over 250 other awards.
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