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The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has announced that our animated short, is on the shortlist of animated films being considered for a 2023 Oscar.
The film, Black Side, written and directed by Uri Lotan, was a co-production between our Manchester studio and Israeli studio The Hive. The film has already won Best International Short Film at Chilemonos International Festival, a British Animation Award for best short film, and the Heartland Indy Shorts Animated Grand Prize. It has also been selected for the prestigious Annie Awards, the Oscars of the animation world.
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Black Slide follows a young man through his struggles in the tragic aftermath of his mother’s untimely death. Overcoming a terrifying water slide becomes a courage and strength building feat, both literal and metaphorical. The film immerses you in the protagonist’s intimate space through textural highlights and detailed lighting — like the slapping of his sandals on the terrazzo floor and the dramatic shift of light from his dark and sadness-filled home to the golden hour of a setting sun as he waits for his life-changing experience in line for the slide.
“Black Slide was inspired by a formative moment from Uri’s childhood, the passing of his mother,” said Lotan in an interview with Animation Magazine. “It was an experience that shaped me and has been ingrained in my consciousness ever since. There was something unique to how it happened and it felt like it was time to get it out of my head and onto the screen.”