Candy Can - Short Film
Anton Octavian
2020, 9 minutes and 15 seconds, 4K
SYNOPSIS:
A vulnerable boy works very hard to escape from a stark reality. He surrounds himself by a world of toys and games but as the truth starts to emerge his refugemight turn out to be atrap.
FESTIVALS
may 2020 - Germany - Stuttgart International Festival of Animated Film (ITFS) - Stuttgart
aug 2020 - Macedonia - Fiipbook Film Festival - Skopje
aug 2020 - Italy - Imaginaria - International Animated Film Festival (IAF) - Conversano
sep 2020 - Ukraina - LINOLEUM International Contemporary Animation and Media Art Festival - Kyiv
sep 2020 - Italy - Sciacca Film Fest - Sciacca
oct 2020 - South Korea - Bucheon International Animation Festival (BIAF) - Bucheon
oct 2020 - Serbia - BALKANIMA - European Animated Film Festival - Belgrade
oct 2020 - Greece - Thessaloniki Animation Festival (TAF) - Thessaloniki
oct 2020 - Turkey - Canlandıranlar Film Festival - Istanbul
oct 2020 - Georgia - TOFUZI International Animated Film Festival - Batumi
nov 2020 - Russia - The Big Cartoon Festival - Moscow
nov 2020 - Romania - Animest International Film Festival - Bucharest
nov 2020 - Argentina - Bit Bang International Animation and Digital Art Festival - Buenos Aires
nov 2020 - Portugal - Cinanima - 44th International Animated Film Festival - Espinho
nov 2020 - Estonia - PÖFF24 - Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival - Tallinn
dec 2020 - Slovenia - Animateka International Animated Film Festival - Ljubljana
dec 2020 - Greece - ICONA Ionian Contemporary Animation Festival - Corfu
dec 2020 - Poland - International Animation Film Festival - Animafest Gdansk - Gdansk
feb 2021 - Belgium - 40th Brussels International Animation Film Festival - Brussels
mar 2021 - Spain - Animac - 25a Mostra Internacional de Cinema d'Animació de Catalunya - Lleida
apr 2021 - Netherlands - Kaboom Animation Festival - Amsterdam
apr 2021 - Brazil - Lanterna Mágica - International Animation Festival - Goiás
may 2021 - Germany - 67th International Short Film Festival Oberhausen - Oberhausen
jun 2021 - France - Festival International du Film d'Aubagne - Aubagne
DIRECTOR’S NOTE
When life becomes too overwhelming we all find different ways to coping with it. For a child this comes much easier because the boundaries between imagination and reality are very blurred. The young boy, Titus, is a champion of childish hopefulness and limitless ambition but his dreams of a better world are so strong that he chooses repeatedly to ignore any dangers of the real one.
He works hard to be the best he can be and misses no opportunity in making up games. As he grows up he might have to abandon his own version of the world with the ideal girlfriend, a family, a real home. In this ideal world money has no value, even though he understands the need for money, because he is a provider himself, he takes care of his younger brothers and is selfless to the point of sacrifice, but his inner world has no need for money.
There are many symbols and metaphors through out, but the can is the most relevant symbol in the story. Everything begins and ends with the love-hate connection between the boy and the can.
It’s a toy for play, it’s a piece of trash that litters his home, it’s a way of providing for his family but ultimately it’s also a trap. The bear head is his own childhood that’s struggling to find a place in his life. His hair plays a more subtle role, it grows longer and snaps back to shorter because he is essentially stuck in between worlds and in between growing up.
Things fall in and out of focus, the style is rough and ever changing and sometimes characters are reduced to simple outlines of themselves.
The boy is so shielded in his wishful thinking, in his pursuit of happiness, that he becomes vulnerable to an inescapable reality.
You might call him the ultimate dreamer but the question remains for the viewer : are these illusions helping him cope or are they just naive distractions keeping him from any genuine change? Can he grow up and hold on to them or simply let go?
FILM CREDITs
Candy Can , animated short film
Romania 2020, 9 min 15 sec
2D, hand-drawn, digital rotoscoping, mixed media
Directed by: Anton Octavian
Script: Cristian Pascariu
Art Director: Andreea Gurban
Background Artist: Raluca Anghel
Animation: Anton Octavian, Andreea Gurban
Storyboard and Editing: Andreea Gurban
Original Soundtrack: Mickey Mouse Teeth - performed by: Troup
Sound Design: Ionut Cosmin Grigore - recorded at: Sol Marker Studio
Animation and Post Production: Animashort Studio (Romania)
Original Footage filmed at Videolink
DOP : Marius Iacob
Director : Anton Octavian
Cast:
Titus: Theodor Lebenita
Ana: Adnana Maria Mihaila
The baker: Ovidiu Onisei
Friends: Max, Alma
Little bother: Andrei Anton
Production Company: Safe Frame
Producer: Mihai Mitrica
With the support of the Romanian National Film Center