The metallic music and crisp sound design of Mélody Boulissière’s brilliant animated short, Ailleurs (Somewhere), are just two of the swaying components that make this so enticing. The animation is so free-flowing at times you can’t keep up.
The brush strokes mixed with the images we see daily on the internet make for a kind of realistic composition. a muddled, multi-layered narrative familiar to the eye – though this time via paint and graphics. Reminiscent of those scrapbooks we kept as kids, where we would keep all our paintings and those bits and piece we cut out of magazines.
Ailleurs, too, captures the hustle bustle of a busy street life, with car horns and people’s chit-chat, without really specifically placing you there. The motion of the animation continues to transcend beyond your last sensory visions, swirling your brain before you have chance to comprehend anything concrete. Like life, I guess.
The setting, abstract or not, soon transforms to the serenity of nature, with water flows and birds chirping blissfully. Feels like, and perhaps for the character at the centre, this is a welcome break from the busy noise of city life. We long to enjoy the calm.
Ailleurs is certainly hypnotic at times, most times, and visually stunning throughout. This is a 5 minute animation experience that will require several viewings. Each one will no doubt entertain and enlighten you some more. And in different ways.
What the Official Jury had to say:
A pleasure to watch. Deceptive simplicity in its presentation. Rated for Mixed Media as it appears there is both painting and stop-motion and/or VFX elements to the film.
Jasmine May
I loved the collage effect and felt like I was watching a painting come to life at times which was great. The hand painted segments where you can see the brush strokes being added are beautiful. Perhaps not quite as clear in its story as the other animations that I’ve watched but so impressive to watch.
Caitlin Higgins
Very interesting piece. Visually stunning. The aesthetic of it and the animation are what really stand out, complementing the idea of escapism. The only drawback is that the message behind it, focused on consumerism, gets a little out-shadowed by the style.
Niccolò Montanari