The Tribeca Festival, which will take place June 4-15 in New York City, announced its feature film line-up today, and among its selections are three animated features.
Some major American film festivals, like Sundance and SXSW, are loath to acknowledge feature animation as an art form, so when Tribeca includes three films, it’s worth highlighting.
Here’s a look at Tribeca’s feature animation offerings this year:
The Square (South Korea — 73 minutes) – North American Premiere. In this stunningly animated romantic drama, a young Swedish diplomat and North Korean traffic officer fall in illicit love, but as his posting to the Embassy in Pyongyang draws to a close, they must make an impossible decision. Directed and written by Kim Bo-sol. Produced by Kim Bo-sol, Park So-hye.
Dog of God (Latvia, United States — 92 minutes) – World Premiere. Rotoscope animation sets the stage for this wild 17th century look at a woman accused of witchcraft whose trial reveals the presence of a werewolf in a deeply religious Livonian community’s midst. Directed by Lauris Abele, Raitis Abele. Written by Lauris Abele, Raitis Abele, Ivo Briedis, Harijs Grundmanis. Produced by Raitis Abele, Kristele Pudane.
Predator: Killer of Killers (United States) – New York Premiere. An original animated action-adventure film set in the Predator universe. The anthology story follows three of the fiercest warriors in human history: a Viking raider guiding her young son on a bloody quest for revenge; a ninja in feudal Japan who turns against his Samurai brother in a brutal battle for succession; and a WWII pilot who takes to the sky to investigate an otherworldly threat to the Allied cause. But while all these warriors are killers in their own right, they are merely prey for their new opponent — the ultimate killer of killers. Directed by Dan Trachtenberg and co-directed by Josh Wassung. Screenplay by Micho Robert Rutare and story by Trachtenberg and Rutare, based on characters created by Jim Thomas & John Thomas. Produced by John Davis, Dan Trachtenberg, Marc Toberoff, Ben Rosenblatt. A Hulu Release.
In addition to the three features, Tribeca is also presenting a couple other animation-themed films: Runa Simi, a documentary about a Peruvian man who wants to dub Disney’s The Lion King in his native (and disappearing language) Quechua, and the New York premiere of Universal’s live-action remake of How to Train Your Dragon.
