Affairs of the Art

Nice drawings, explosion of imagination, fair portrait of a family and dark humor in large doses. And exploration of cruelty, in different forms, with cold results.

The irony rules in this case , and it is very less pleasant. Because , as a sort of roller coster, it is a splendid analysis of different ages and their bizzare behaviors, crisis of maturity, a gray marriage and the kids and their ways of succes.

Not the last, moving for sort of nice translation of melancholia, for familiar crumbs of childhood , for dialogues and small details , for the spirit of child, from fascinations or experiments to the pure forms of cruelty.

So, a sort of short animation animated by reflections of eccenticity.

I really did like the detailed quality of the active animation in this latest outing for "Beryl". She likes to draw, indeed she's obsessed with it - and alongside the eccentric behaviour of her husband "Ifor" and their son "Colin" we share in the joy of their collections of perfectly arranged screws, or her stuffed animals, indeed even a fanatical collection of jarred pickles. Nothing is undrawn. Meantime, her sister "Beverly" who has made a fortune extolling the virtues of all things nip and tuck is living the life of luxury in Los Angeles, and at times she is very reminiscent of one or two famous Hollywood stars whom it'd probably be libellous to name! It's a bit on the vulgar side towards the end, and though that might read a bit puritanical, I found it just dragged what was really quite creative and entertaining into the realms of something just a bit crass. Still, it's moves with one heck of a pace, there's a bit of quite pithy dialogue and for the most part it's decent, if a bit long of a watch.

There are worlds that mix with each other and are forced to coexist even though they seem strange to each other. In Affairs of the Art, family, death and art are balanced and they also coexist, sometimes too much, with each other. The characters, therefore, are most imaginative, realistic and strange; each with their own individual passion, each with their own contrasting qualities.

Animation plays a fundamental role in the construction of such a twisted and realistic artistic-family world, and it uses each of the advantages of traditional animation by hand to stay chaotic, not to fall into the static, the dead. Its best quality could also be its worst mistake: its intricate narrative, without connection or adherence, which serves mainly to complement the highly imaginative style of animation... to show us the observation, innovation, resolution, experience and preservation that comes from the soul of the artist, the soul of the Beryl family and probably of every person who indulges in art.

Of course, it also has its disadvantages, and those come from its great ability to offend its audience, to appear too cruel, too exaggerated and disrespectful, to generate conflict and disapproval. Probably if you are very sensitive you should not see it and hope that it fascinates you.

Director Joanna Quinn's lovable protagonist Beryl returns, telling her own story of her childhood, her family, and herself as an artist and a mother.

The storytelling in Affairs of the Art is fluid and compelling, the characters strikingly honest, and Joanna's distinctive style absolutely captivating. In this film about art, each hand drawn frame of the animation is a work of art in itself.

Affairs of the Art absolutely deserves all the awards buzz it's received, with wins across the festival circuit as well as BAFTA and Oscar nominations.

This is the best animated film I have seen since the trio from Belleville. What a great work! There is so much LIFE in this short movie!! So much creativity, ideas, surprises, curiousness, joy and talent that it's bursting at the seams. This should have won an Oscar but I guess that for the sanctimonious Hollywood this is way too creative, too smart, too realistic.

Joanna Quinn is amazingly talented not only as an animator, but her voicing the main character gave the real breath of life to Beth and the whole story.

I'm so glad that YouTube, in its infinite unpredictability and randomness, suggested me this video! Thank you Joanna and Les and all the crew!!!