Review: Flow at OIAF24
Directed by Latvian director / animator / composer Gints Zilbalodis, Flow is a dialogue-free animated adventure fantasy film about a cat surviving a great flood on a boat filled with animals various other species.
What is most striking about the film to me is its visual look. Chris Sanders (writer/director of The Wild Robot) spoke of this emerging trend in animated film during a panel at the Ottawa International Film Festival. The emerging style is one where parts of the frame are often less rendered, giving the audience an experience similar to moving through an impressionist painting. Whereas the advances in technology used to drive animators towards photo realistic looks or every detail in a frame, the trend now seems to favour using all that computing power to drive camera movements giving audiences a more surreal experience.
There were sections of the film Flow that looked like they were shot hand-held; there were beautiful long takes; there were sections that looked like found footage. It was incredible to notice the characters hit so many emotional story beats with no dialogue. The subtlety in the micro facial expressions and the tremendous sound design elevated the experience.
Flow is a film powered by a unique visual language. It inspires you to go with the flow and not force yourself on this world. It is about friendship and camaraderie, about making connections with unlikely companions.
Flow was selected to premiere in the Un Certain Regard section of the 2024 Cannes Film Festival and screened at the Ottawa International Animation Film Festival this weekend. It has been selected as the Latvian entry for Best International Feature Film at the 97th Academy Awards.
The Canadian Film Institute’s Ottawa International Animation Festival (OIAF) was founded in 1976 and recognized as the largest and oldest animation festival in North America. OIAF regularly attracts upwards of 25,000 attendees and continues at various venues in downtown Ottawa until September 29th. The festival catalogue and schedule can be found on the festival website.
Jith Paul
Web Designer, Editor, Film Reviewer
Jith Paul is an independent filmmaker based in Ottawa. While pursuing a career as a software engineer, he decided to take a detour to follow his passion for film and filmmaking, establishing Treepot Media in 2010.
He is a co-founder of the Ottawa Canadian Film Festival, and editor of the film613 blog.
When he is not busy fighting crime, he coordinates the efforts of an international team of software developers and service providers as the Team Lead for Digital Development at CPAC, the Cable Public Affairs Channel.
jithpaul.com
He is a co-founder of the Ottawa Canadian Film Festival, and editor of the film613 blog.
When he is not busy fighting crime, he coordinates the efforts of an international team of software developers and service providers as the Team Lead for Digital Development at CPAC, the Cable Public Affairs Channel.
jithpaul.com
