World of Tomorrow

I recently wrote an article for Influx magazine about Don Hertzfeldt and his wonderful animated short films. In this I mentioned that his newest film, "World of Tomorrow", will be debuting at the end of March. However, this film is different from the usual Hertzfeldt release because it's his first film done digitally as well as his first released directly on demand.

The film is an unusual sci-fi short that begins with a small child, Emily, being contacted by a clone of herself over two hundred years in the future. It seems that many folks living in our future are clones--often second, third or fourth generation clones. And, surprisingly, the adult Emily clone of the future wants to bring young Emily to her time to show her about and muse about life. As for young Emily, she sounds like a three year-old and seems sweet but oblivious to the importance of all the things her clone tells her about life. So much about the clone's life is empty and sad...and life in the future sounds that way in general. Even worse, the world apparently is about to end and the Emily clone just wants to see her original self to say goodbye.

If all this sounds maudlin, it sometimes is. The film is an odd combination of existential angst, loneliness and even dark comedy. For some, the film will obviously have some significance and deeper meaning. For others it will just be silly, absurd and good for a laugh. It's amazing how many of Hertzfeldt's films have various levels on which you can enjoy them.

As far as the quality of the film goes, all of Hertzfeldt's cartoons have stick figures and very simple animation and because of that I am hesitant to rate this film higher. However, because it is digital, it looks richer and more colorful than a typical Hertzfeldt film. But it's the strangeness and depth to the story that make it wonderful. And, the amazing voice of young Emily (Winona Mae) will make you smile or even laugh--despite the strangeness and seriousness of the plot. Overall, it's a heck of a film and I can understand why it was recently awarded the Grand Jury Prize for Short Film at the Sundance Film Festival.

UPDATE: I just saw this and the other nominees for the Best Animated Short Oscar. This Hertzfeldt film was, by far, the best of the films and I sure hope it wins on February 28th.

UPDATE: This film did not win but "Bear Story" (a nice nominee) won the award.

An incredible short animation. this was very thoughtful piece of work about the world around us. how easy Don Hertzfeldt describe the world. and I do believe in near future we will see such things in reality. and I should say the dialogs were perfect.

Don Hertzfeldt has become one of my favorite filmmakers! "Rejected" was always one of my favorite short films, and "It's Such a Beautiful Day" moved me more than any animated film since "Grave of the Fireflies". I'm glad to say that Hertzfeldt has absolutely amazed me yet again with his masterpiece "World of Tomorrow".

"World of Tomorrow" is a truly mind bending experience, and one of the greatest short films I've ever seen (along with greats like "A Trip to the Moon", "La jetee", and "Zero for Conduct"). It manages to always be thought provoking, hilarious, and bizarrely moving and emotional. It is an experience that I won't soon be forgetting, and I highly encourage seeing it as soon as possible, for this is one of the greatest films of 2015, short or feature!

I know it may be strange to do a full length review on a short film, but I felt this one deserved it. Don Hertzfeldt is one of my favorite animators right now and he's done other work that I loved like "It's Such A Beautiful Day" (which I will review at some point in the future) and the disturbingly funny "Rejected". "World Of Tomorrow" is his most recent work, and probably his most critically praised. What do I think of it? I think its absolutely fantastic. Personally, I don't think its as good as "It's Such A Beautiful Day", but still great. Anyways lets continue.

One thing to note is the animation. Hertzfeldt is known for using a somewhat minimalistic but unique style for most of his work, and this is probably his most visual work, since it presents other planets and parts of space. It does use a lot of techniques to create this style like using live action, special blur effects and so on. The short also has an amazingly creative and original story, so creative that it kinda reminds me of those famous short stories from Phillip K. Dick. It does bring up these great concepts, but also has time for emotional and funny moments. There is also some nice voice acting with the clone of Emily and her younger self.

So in the end "World Of Tomorrow" is a creative, funny, and touching animation that makes you think long after you have viewed it. Honestly guys, go watch it now, its on Netflix its only 15 minutes long and I promise you that you won't regret it.

Final Score: 8.5/10

World of Tomorrow (2015)

*** 1/2 (out of 4)

Don Hertzfeldt's rather unique and original animated short deals with a young girl who is visited from the future by her third clone, which takes her into the future and show her how the world has changed in the two hundred plus years.

I'm watching this short a couple days before the Oscars are actually announced and I must admit that I'll be shocked if something beats this. Well, it's the Oscars so I guess anything is possible but this is a rather clever, original and unique little gem that manages to be rather smart throughout its 17 minute running time. The animation itself is rather laid back but I thought this approach actually worked extremely well and especially when you consider that it's the screenplay and story that is really selling the material. Both Julia Pott and Winona Mae are extremely effective with their voices and really sell the characters quite nicely.