Determined to bring the short film artform back into cinemas, Walt Disney Animation Studios has announced that it will released the groundbreaking 2D/3D hybrid short Paperman in front of their forthcoming Wreck-It Ralph.
From the press releases, here’s the film’s synopsis: Using a minimalist black-and-white style, the short follows the story of a lonely young man in mid-century New York City, whose destiny takes an unexpected turn after a chance meeting with a beautiful woman on his morning commute. Convinced the girl of his dreams is gone forever, he gets a second chance when he spots her in a skyscraper window across the avenue from his office. With only his heart, imagination and a stack of papers to get her attention, his efforts are no match for what fate has in store for him.
Paperman is directed by John Kahrs. It is his directorial debut, but he has been working with WDAS since 2007, and prior to that was an animator on Pixar films A Bug’s Life, Toy Story 2, Monster’s Inc. and Ratatouille.
The short, which debuted at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival in June, was created by 2D and CG artists who used a proprietary program called Meander. Employing a technique called “final line advection”, artists were able to add a level of grace and expressiveness never before seen in an animated film.
Wreck-It Ralph is released in the US on 2 November 2012, and in Australia on 26 December 2012 from Disney.
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