9 (short film)
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| Original title | 9 |
| Country of production | United States |
| original language | English |
| Publishing year | 2005 |
| length | 11 minutes |
| Rod | |
| Director | Shane Acker |
| script | Shane Acker |
| production | UCLA animation workshop |
| music | Eric Olsen |
9 is an American computer-animated short film directed by Shane Acker in 2005.
action
The world in a post-apocalyptic time: The rag doll number 9 makes a swivel lever in a house that is connected to a book by a rope. He also fills a dummy doll with tar. Then he sits down in front of the house. With him he has a light bulb stuck on a stick, which gives him light, as well as a mirror-like, small talisman that he looks at. He remembers:
He was once on the road with his mentor 5, who carried this item with him. Together they found the incandescent lamp, which made them glow through a metal construction. They were constantly on guard against a metal monster with a cat's skull that was hunting them. Whenever the monster was around, the mirror surface of the talisman glowed green. Suddenly the green light shone, and 5 indicated the talisman 9, which was supposed to hide with the light bulb. 5 in turn wanted to face the monster, but it appeared behind his back and impaled 5. It sucked out his soul with an identical talisman - 5 died, and the monster pulled a part of its cloth skin onto its own body, which was already covered by the other seven rag doll skins that the monster had killed so far. At the last second, 9 managed to escape from the monster that has been hunting him ever since.
In the present, the talisman suddenly begins to glow in 9's hand. The doll goes into the house and waits for the monster that has picked up the scent. It follows the supposed flickering of the talisman, which turns out to be the flickering of a 9s incandescent lamp that lies in front of the prepared doll. The monster rips open the doll and gets caught in the tar. Only now does 9 show up, rushes at the monster from behind, snatches the talisman from him and then takes refuge on a high plank that ends in the air. The monster rushes on 9, who can save himself from the plank using the pivot lever construction. At the same time, the book falls onto the plank, which breaks and pulls the monster into the depths. The piece of plank, in turn, bores itself into the body of the monster that is dying.
9 goes to a fireplace where he wants to ritually burn the skins of his eight friends who have been killed. Suddenly he realizes that his talisman and that of the monster are two halves that, when put together, make a ball. The souls of the eight killed dolls now emerge from the sphere. They merge with their skins and have found their peace. The talisman goes out and 9 sets off the next morning into the unknown.
production
Shane Acker created 9 as a master's thesis as part of his dual degree in architecture and animation at UCLA . He originally planned to animate the film in stop motion but ended up using computer animation for financial reasons. With interruptions he worked on 9 for four and a half years .
In an interview, Acker named the works of Jan Švankmajer and the Brothers Quay as models for his film, so the oversized baby doll on which 9 is sitting is an allusion to the Brothers Quay. The scene in which 5 and 9 pull the lightbulb out of the lamp is a tribute to Pixar's Luxo and The Little Lamp . The film was also inspired by the story of Beowulf , so the book that is used in the trap is the story of Beowulf.
9 was adapted as a feature film, which in turn was directed by Shane Acker. Tim Burton and Timur Bekmambetow were among the producers . # 9 hit theaters in 2009.
Awards
The film was awarded a gold medal at the Student Academy Awards in 2005. At the BendFilm Festival he received the jury's prize in the same year.
9 was nominated for an Oscar in the category " Best Animated Short Film " in 2006, but could not prevail against The Moon and the Son: An Imagined Conversation .
Web links
- 9 in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- 9 on bcdb.com