Das Rad

I have had the privilege of seeing all the nominees for Best Animated Short for the Oscars in 2003. What got me interested in seeing all of them is a review for THE CATHEDRAL (also a nominee) in which the reviewer complained that this film, not CHUBBCHUBB! deserved the Oscar. Well, after seeing them all, I really think CHUBBCHUBB! should have probably won, though DAS RAD is very, very close--so close that I really think the makers should be commended--especially since CHUBBCHUBB! was made by a huge corporation (the same people that made the CGI feature SURF'S UP) and DAS RAD was a much smaller scale production. Also, DAS RAD has one of the most original concepts I've ever seen. While CHUBBCHUBB! is funnier and probable more fun for the average viewer, DAS RAD makes you think and the idea of the world as seen through the eyes of large rocks is amazingly different. And what also was exceptional was the idea that rocks are such slow and permanent creatures that the world around them appears to go at lightning fast speed! Clever and wonderful--see this short.

This little gem appeared on the Animation Show Volume 1, which I can only recommend. If you found this film then you'll like it.

I wont give the plot away but it's really clever and supremely executed. The use of stop motion is extra fitting. The voice acting is also very good, at least as far as I could understand the German.

Technically this deserves any awards it won. It must have taken forever to coordinate and set up the quite complex shots. I'm not sure weather they dabbled in digital imagery but I think we can assume it. The core of the film is the charming stop-motion however.

If you managed to find this page, and read this review, then you really should take the final step and track down this short. In todays digital age it wont be too hard. It's really worth it.

Perception is all about your perspective. This short allows you to see the world and the passage of time through the perspective of rocks, which might sound dry but is actually quiet amusing.

This film is a combination of stopmotion animation (one of my favorite styles) and digital animation. They blend the two seamlessly, not an easy feat.

This is one of those rare films that reward repeat viewings. Your eye catches different details each time and you start to appreciate the pain-staking attention to detail that the team of animators put into this work. You can pick it up over at www.Filmporium.com. The five dollar disk also includes the wickedly funny "Astronauts" and the Olympic event parody "Ski Jumping Pairs."

It is a film for discover the reality near yourself in the fair perspective. It is an amusing , touching, ironic and delicate short animation about history, changes, people and nature. And it gives more than a lovely story but a wise manner to discover the essence of the things around every new day. Two characters. A talk . The status of witnesses of a large circle. Small observations and large slices of silence. And the fear of the viewer about the victory of progress against the rocks. The end is a wise one especially as answer to this fear. So, admirable animation.

It's a simple message, but it is delivered in a wonderful way. Rocks are the main characters. As centuries pass and civilizations come and are eventually gone, the rocks endure. We, as humans, simply are a blur in time lapse. I loved the business with lichens and moss on the rocks, the price of not moving for centuries. Excellent short animation feature.