Spreading Some Sunshine

As the days grow darker and chillier I take some comfort in seeing that Sunscapades is gradually picking up steam, with international screenings scheduled through the new year and the online community ablaze and agog with chatter about its impact on the independent filmmaking scene (by which I mean a few people have tweeted about it). One upcoming event who've just announced their full programme is the excellent London International Animation Festival, one I've frequently attended in a Skwigly capacity but never before as a filmmaker. Fortunately Sunscapades has been deemed grim enough to be part of their Late Night Bizarre programme on Saturday December 8th at the Horse Hospital, an indie arts venue that's no doubt riddled with angry horse ghosts whose vengeful equine spirits can only be assuaged by my cartoon merriment. You know how it goes.

In the more immediate future I have some updates on the busy few days the film has ahead, with screenings in Wales, Serbia and the US coming up. First off the SoDak Motion Festival in Brookings SD will include it on October 25th in their official selection that kicks off at 7pm. This will be at the South Dakota Art Museum (I'd previously mentioned it would also play in Sioux Falls on the 27th but I gather that one's been cancelled - FIE ON YOU, SIOUX FALLIANS. FIE I SAY!).
The following evening it will be in Serbia for Film Front, who've now announced the International Selection screening time will be 8pm at the Novi Sad Cultural Center.
Finally on Saturday 27th I'll be heading over to Chapter in Cardiff to catch the film's inclusion as part of Cardiff Animation Frights, which starts at 7pm - tickets for the screening are now on sale and as it's my birthday eve I'll be in an extra jubilant mood, so come along and keep me company as I continue to age gracelessly.

Premature Adulation

The next outing for Sunscapades will serve as the film's Italian premiere at the Fano International Film Festival! This is one is fairly unique as it has announced its award winners and special mentions before the actual screenings have taken place. Can't say that's a practice I've ever encountered over this past decade of festival submissions but I shan't rock the boat as Sunscapades is among the films to get itself a Special Jury Mention! Not too shabby.
The screening itself will take place on Wednesday October 17th (landing slap-bang between its two screenings at the BFI London Film Festival) starting 9:15pm at the Cinema Malatesta in Fano alongside two recent favourites of mine, Britt Raes's Catherine and Rory Byrne's An Island.

Later this month the film is part of the 2018 SoDak Motion Festival's official selection, alongside such sterling work as Animade's Tend, Evan DeRushie's Birdlime and David Chai's Space Butthole. Actually I haven't seen the latter, I just found myself moved by the poetry of its title. Although I don't have exact specifics on times, the screenings will take place October 25th in Brookings SD at the South Dakota Art Museum and on October 27th in Sioux Falls, SD at the Washington Pavilion's Belbas Theatre. This festival also included Klementhro a couple years' back so they're a grand bunch in my book.
That's all for tonight but fret ye not, you fretty little fretting fretters, there'll be more news a-comin' soon.

"Can't pay? We'll literally do everything in our power to not have to take it away, 'cause I got these bad knees, see..."

These days my fictional creation Klementhro, once thought to be a bit of an out-to-sea loner, has way more of a life than I do. As such he has a pretty packed few days of galavanting hither and thither ahead of him while I sit at home watching Can't Pay repeats and praying the various After Effects renders I have cued up don't crash.

Klementhro, the comparative socialite, will be enjoying a rare US outing at the SoDak Motion Festival this Thursday, October 27th. Screening alongside work by some excellent filmmakers including Tomer Eshed and fellow Bristol School of Animation grad Simon Acosta, the film will play in the festival's Animation Competition 6:30pm at the South Dakota Art Museum.
Some miles away on the following night, the Nuit du Court Métrage tour will take the film to La Chaux-de-Fonds, where the evening's proceedings will kick off around 8pm at the Cinéma ABC.
The night after that (October 29th, not to condescendingly imply you can't do basic addition) the tour is headed to Neuchâtel, again looking at an 8pm start at the Cinéma Studio.

On top of all that, the Brazilian animation fest Anima Mundi has unveiled its full programme and, as previously indicated, Klementhro is among the official selection! From tomorrow onwards it will screen as part of Shorts 5 in such fine company as Joost Lieuwma's Paniek! and the times/venues for the Rio de Janeiro screenings (there'll be more in São Paulo next month) are as follows:

• 25th October: 10pm, Cine Odeon - Centro Cultural Luiz Severiano Ribeiro
• 26th October: 6pm, Livraria Cultura
• 28th October: 3pm, Cine Odeon
• 29th October: 5pm, Cidade das Artes - Teatro de câmara
• 30th October: 6pm, Cine Odeon

Ooh, hang on. I think they're about to finally take something awa- no, false alarm. As you were.

Bits and bobs. Mainly bits.

After a warm response to episode one, Laura-Beth and I gleefully soldiering on with our new Skwigly podcast series Intimate Animation. In this episode we discuss the effectiveness of animation in conveying sex-related topics such as Project Consent and work by filmmakers including Sam Morrison and Ruth Lingford.
We also meet talented director Anna Ginsburg whose Random Acts/It's Nice That short film project Private Parts is screening at both Encounters and Ottawa next week. There are some keen insights from Anna that we're really happy to be able to share and on the whole I'm feeling very positive about this new endeavour which, as always, you can stream above or direct download.

As well as what you hear in the podcast segment we also discuss Anna's other work (will put up a written feature going into these soon) and her recent travels. As it turns out, Finland's Turku Animated Film Festival that she just returned from had, unbeknownst to me, included Klementhro in one of its guest programmes Ship Ahoy! that took place on the unfortunately named S/S Bore. As best I can tell this was in association with its screening in the Czech Republic back in April, so much belated thanks to them!

While the film is screening from tomorrow through to Saturday at Ukraine's Linoleum Festival I've also gotten wind that it will be part of South Dakota's SoDak Motion Festival that takes place in late October. Stateside screenings have always been something of a rarity for me so that's very pleasant news indeed. More specifics when I get 'em.