Last year's ceremony — the first post-pandemic — was quite strange. Unusually quiet. As if frightened by the virus, the Oscar justified itself: yes, we still hold it, but without much noise/glitter/fun with champagne.
And it took place in several places at once. For example, UK nominees gathered at London's BFI Southbank cinema, owned by the British Film Institute. There was no leader.
On March 27, the 94th ceremony will take place at the Dolby Theater in Hollywood, the first in three years to feature a host, most likely Pete Davidson. In his repertoire of jokes and sketches related to reality, he is not afraid to touch on the most difficult problematic topics: from the September 11 tragedy to drug addiction and relationships with the church.
The main news for us is that the Russian film «Boxing Ballet» by Anton Dyakov was nominated for an Oscar in the category of short animation.
At the Suzdal animation show, this picture appeared like a devil from a snuffbox. Even its producer Alexander Boyarsky saw the finished version only on the big festival screen.
It all started with art pitching at the St. Petersburg studio «Melnitsa», known mainly for cartoons about heroes. After winning the pitching, Dyakov could use the rich technological base of the studio. And we saw a new handwriting of the director. Instead of a light tactile image («Kostya», «Python and the Watchman») — an oily, dense style, very bright and expressive. At the same time, a sharp drawing, a clear story. A cool mix came out: author's + commercial. Driving, brilliant in terms of timing and editing of the movie.
Screenshot from the cartoon BoxBallet. Frame: kino-teatr.ru
The plot is simple. Boxer — a mountain of muscles, a broken nose, plaster patches, red sweatpants — is in love with the Ballerina without memory. Into something incorporeal, airy, like a fouette above the floor. What do they have in common? Love is evil, and the mood for love can also be an amazing symbiosis of the rough and the subtle — the attraction of opposites.
Titanic work: the film is drawn in 2D, but then almost every frame was manually tinted — instead of gloss, the image got volume , depth, density.
I think that producer Alexander Boyarsky never regretted the funds invested in the stunning hit. It has already been noted: Dyakov's film is completely universal, any viewer likes it, regardless of age, nationality, or watching. Therefore, the chances of winning are very high.