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Web Wandering Web Exclusive - Canada’s best Oscar chance is always NFB

The National Film Board has always been something that Canada could be proud of, producing critically-acclaimed short films, both live action and animated, for decades.
Animal

The National Film Board has always been something that Canada could be proud of, producing critically-acclaimed short films, both live action and animated, for decades. Of course, in Yorkton, that means they also happen to provide much of the program for the annual Yorkton Film Festival, because you can’t really think about Canadian short film without the NFB.

But that’s in May, and we are in February, so instead of the Golden Sheaf let’s think of another gold statue, this one of a gold man. The NFB has had 75 films nominated for an Academy Award over the years, and with the Oscars coming up, they’ve just made their latest nominee, Animal Behaviour, free to watch at nfb.ca, though only until Feb. 24.

The 14 minute short, about animals in group therapy, is of a piece with a current trend in animation, which involves having a bunch of animals that normally wouldn’t get along all living together in human situations. Sometimes, like in Disney’s Zootopia, it’s used as a way to talk about racism to kids. Other times, like in Illumination’s Sing, it exists purely for visual gags, because Sing doesn’t do anything else with the premise - it’s a movie where a tiny mouse drives a car and that’s the extent of it.

As can be gleaned from the title, the film is largely about behaviour, using animal habits to make a point about people. Sure, there aren’t any people who have an obsessive need to smell another’s rear end, but it’s still talking about compulsive behaviour, and it’s a film where the animators spent a great deal of time, effort, and passion rendering every butt on screen so it feels at least a little like a reflection of their own obsessions - directors David Fine and Alison Snowden don’t ever resist the chance to draw nudity, as can be seen in their much earlier short Bob’s Birthday, and here from every animal just being nude.

It’s a silly animated short, sure, but we are talking about national pride as much as anything here, and we can be pretty proud that our country’s animators are a staple of the Academy Awards. This is just the latest nomination over decades, and each time should be exciting, and it’s something Canada can be proud to watch.

At the end of May, it’s always good fun to watch the films here and guess which ones might have a chance of getting an Oscar the next year.

Until then, we can go to nfb.ca and watch the one already nominated.