Animated Nominees

Feature Length Animation

Anomalisa - Wow! This one is so weird and different that I don't even know how to compare it to the other nominees. Or to any other movie, for that matter. This is such a great example of using the medium of animation to tell a story in a way you couldn't have done with live action. This movie tackles complex psychological and psycho-sexual themes. It is at times surreal, creepy, baffling and downright funny! I challenge anyone to understand it on their first viewing! And then explain it to me, please.

Inside Out - This would seem like the traditional expectation to win the Oscar. It is extremely solid story-telling; funny, poignant, exciting and truthful. I know more adults that felt like they connected with it than kids. The adults' brains are ruled by Sadness and Anger? Ok, yeah, get out of our heads, Pixar! The actors voicing the emotions were so perfectly cast! And is it just me or did we all learn a little something about our brains watching it? Really it deserves the win, just to respect the fading memory of Bing Bong. Enough said.

Shaun the Sheep Movie - I found this movie more enjoyable than I would have expected. And my kids laughed their little heads off. But honestly, it just feels like it is rounding out the category here. It is really nice to see a variety of animation styles represented this year. And it's an honor for Shaun the Sheep just to be nominated.

Boy in the World and When Marnie Was There were not available for me to screen.

Animated Shorts

Bear Story - A sad story about a bear who gets dragged off to the Circus and fights his way back to the city he once called home only to find that his family is gone. It's in a very cool style of animation.

Prologue - Six minutes long and it had a huge warning that it contained adult content and that children should leave the room. The warming alone should have held my interest, but I couldn't stay awake. It was an interesting kind of pencil drawn looking animation and I didn't get it at all.

Sanjay's Super Team - This was super cute! A boy tries to watch his beloved cartoons while his father tries to conduct his prayers in the same room. The two get blended into something that both generations can share. I saw John Lasseter's name at the end so I'm voting for this one to win.

We Can't Live Without Cosmos - Um, weird. It had a riff on friendship, with some nice moments of humor and after that it kind of lost me.

World of Tomorrow - This was all about a future cloned Emily coming back to tell a child Emily all about cloning and digital interfacing in the future. It had a few sharply funny lines and otherwise was a little bit long and droning. I think ultimately this was a piece about trying to tell me I spend too much time on my phone, but I'm not sure. Let me ask Siri...