Continued success for the animated film “The Stork”
The animated film “The Stork” by Morten Tšinakov and Lucija Mrzljak has won the Bronze Jabberwocky Award at the recently concluded Etiuda&Anima International Film Festival in Kraków.
„Through a playful portrayal of freedom, this film reminds us about the absurdity of life and the silliness of unconstrained desire. We enjoyed following the grotesque behaviour of the protagonist, who demonstrates an opposition to mediocre life patterns of a couple whose life he intervenes into. It makes us question our own established patterns and values, and invites the viewer to follow the protagonist beyond social and physical norms,” stated the jury in their explanation of the award.
The Etiuda&Anima Festival has two separate competition programs: Dinosaur for short feature and documentary films, and Jabberwocky for animated films. This year marked the 28th edition of the Etiuda&Anima Festival, which has become the most important animation festival in Poland, highly valuing exploratory works. This year’s grand prix was awarded to “Affairs of the Art” by British animation classic Joanna Quinn, who has also been nominated for an Oscar for short animation.
Morten Tšinakov and Lucija Mrzljak have previously participated in the Etiuda&Anima competition. In 2018, their “Demonstration of Brilliance in Four Acts” won the Golden Jabberwocky. Priit Pärn, under whom Tšinakov and Mrzljak studied, received the Etiuda&Anima Golden Dinosaur Lifetime Achievement Award in 2007 for outstanding artistic and pedagogical achievements.
Morten Tšinakov commented, “This time, it’s like this. You can’t always win the top prizes. It still feels very good; we made it among the best out of more than fifty competition films and several recognized authors, which is a great honor.”
This year has been successful for “The Stork.” In the summer, it won two awards at the prestigious Zagreb Animation Festival: the Audience Award for Best Short Film and the Jury’s Special Prize in the Croatian Films category (Lucija Mrzljak is from Croatia). Now, the Bronze Jabberwocky from Etiuda&Anima has been added to the accolades. In total, “The Stork” has won nine awards.
“The Stork” tells the story of a man who suddenly realizes that he is not a human but a bird…
The film was produced by Eesti Joonisfilm, with support from the Estonian Film Institute and the Cultural Endowment of Estonia.
More information about the Etiuda&Anima Festival: https://etiudaandanima.pl/en/
Film trailer: https://youtu.be/hRT8YwkqsQY
Film website: https://joonisfilm.ee/en/films/the-stork/
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