Everyday Activist - NFB Short Films

Posted on Monday, February 26, 2018 at 09:00 PM

NFB Short Films: Hedgehog's Home | I Like Girls | Manivald

Movie Review by Everyday Activist X CalgaryMovies.com

I received three short films, Hedgehog’s Home, I Like Girls and Manivald weeks ago to review, but January has been pretty busy. As always I struggle with the whole spoiler alert thing.

Hedgehog’s Home, director Eva Cvijanovic

Hedgehog’s Home is based on a children’s story by Branko Copic about a hedgehog who loves his home. The other animals don’t understand why he is completely content with what he has, because they would rather seek external pleasures. This behavior leads to their untimely demise. Broadening the scope to the world of adults rather than woodland creatures continuously desiring external comfort increases our risk for addiction, a behavior which often puts us into harm’s way.

My favorite TEDx talks is by Mandy Saligari, an addictions therapist, as she talks about outsourcing our feelings and the dangers associated with it.The talk helped me understand the difference between giving from a place of abundance versus giving from a place of lack. Hedgehog operated from a space abundance being generous with his time and had healthy boundaries when he wanted to go home. Fox’s hospitality seemed a bit conditional as he had trouble respecting Hedgehog’s decision to leave, to the point of stalking him home.

Children understand more than we give them credit for knowing. My friend and her daughter watched another NFB film, Oscar nominated, Blind Vaysha, together and had a good discussion about mindfulness of the present moment. Hedgehog’s Home provides another opportunity for parents and children to connect using a story to illustrate bigger issues.

You can view this short in its entirety with a CAMPUS subscription on the National Film Board of Canada’s website: https://www.nfb.ca/film/hedgehogs_home/

I Like Girls, director Diane Obomsawin

Of the three this award winning film of the Nelvana Grand Prize for Independent Short at the 40th Ottawa International Animation Festival, was my favorite as I am a sucker for love stories, especially this close to Valentine’s Day. This short piece tells separate stories of several young female couples falling in love with each other for the first time. The animation that makes them all seem so light hearted, even with difficult consequences. In most of the stories people were accepting of the lesbian relationship, except one where her brother’s girlfriend had fallen in love with her instead. They stayed with her girlfriend’s poor family. Eventually, her family came to pick her up and sent her to farm in Ontario, away from her girlfriend. The film is based on her graphic novels J’aime les filles and in English On Loving Girls.

You can view this short in its entirety with a CAMPUS subscription at the National Film Board of Canada’s website: https://www.nfb.ca/film/i_like_girls/

Manivald, director Chintis Lundgren

The animation medium often examines strange themes. My friend wanted to watch the animated shorts at the Calgary International Film Festival in 2016. We and many others ended up leaving, because they were a bit too artistic for our narrative style expectations. Manivald has a storyline even if it is a bit strange in its presentation. It’s the story of an over achieving male in his mid-thirties living with his controlling, single mother, always wanting the freedom presented to him outside his window in the form of a traveling band. The strangeness happens when a tradesman shows up at the door to fix the washing machine and ends up “spending quality time” with both the mother and son on separate occasions. This travesty causes Manivald to strike out on his own for the first time. After experiencing disappointment he uses his acquired talents to join the traveling band. Overall a happy ending, but not something I would watch again.

You can view this short in its entirety with a CAMPUS subscription at the National Film Board of Canada’s website: https://www.nfb.ca/film/manivald/

Calgary Showtimes:  Hedgehog's Home > | I Like Girls > | Manivald >