Cannes Prizes Pt 1: Sidebar Glories and Oscar Dreams

Congratulations to this poodle below from The Meyerowitz Stories who won the coveted Palme Dog

The Palme Dog is not an official prize from the festival itself but it's always fun to see who wins. Past years winners have been the utterly adorable bulldog from Paterson (2016), the Maltese from Arabian Nights (2014), Uggie from The Artist (2011) and so on. The Palme Dog people also gave an honorary to the bomb sniffing dogs working Cannes to ensure the safety of the industry professionals attending. 

But wait that's not all. Two of the official Cannes juries also named their winners in advance of tomorrow's main closing night ceremony. Read about them after the jump...

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"Dante's Lunch" Dives Into The World of Pixar's Coco

New Pixar shorts are always a cause for celebration – especially after Piper’s Best Animated Short win at this year’s Academy Awards – but their most recent iteration is closer to Ratatouille’s first look of rat-induced restaurant mayhem than a tiny standalone film. Fresh off the heels from their teaser trailer, Dante’s Lunch is a vibrant, bite-sized taste of the world of Coco. It was developed early in the process for Pixar’s newest feature film, which is co-directed by Toy Story 3's Lee Unkrich and first-time director Adrian Molina. Pulsing with color, texture, and streamers of papel picado, the slapstick-laden short explores the Mexico streets we’ll experience later this year in full view but from the perspective of Dante the lucha libre mask-wearing dog, namely his salivated chase through cacti, autumn leaves, and mouth-watering corn with mayonnaise, chili powder and cheese.

Until Coco hits theaters on November 22nd... What’s your favorite Pixar short, teaser trailer or otherwise?

A Look at the Animated Shorts

Eric here with a look at the animated shorts. If you missed previous nominated shorts coverage, Glenn investigated the documentary options, I looked at the live action shorts, and Nathaniel interviewed the director of Sing.

Pros and cons and predictions after the jump...

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A Look at the Live Action Shorts

Eric here with a look at this year’s nominees for the Live Action Short category. 

Considering the fantastic year we’ve had for cinema, it’s a bit disappointing that the nominees aren’t the equal of their longform cousins, or even as strong as last year’s nominees.  But there’s some nice work.

Here's an overview of the pros and cons for each of the nominees...

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Interview: Kristóf Deák from "Munich" to "Sing"

Kristóf DeákIf you've had a chance to catch the touring films in the Oscar nominated shorts program in select movie theaters now, we're willing to be that one of your favorites was the Hungarian short Sing written and directed by Kristóf Deák. This sweet well acted story is about a new girl in a children's choir whose teacher makes her feel less than welcome. 

Sing, not to be confused with the current blockbuster cartoon about pop star wannabe talking animals, could well be a threat to win its category though competition is ever tough and unpredictable in the shorts categories. Kristóf has seen and enjoyed the "strong batch" competition, saying "I won't shed any tears if we don't take the statue home"

I had the opportunity to talk to the young director, currently in Los Angeles for the final push before Oscar, and though he doesn't know what's in store for his career, he's taiken the smart stance of "be ready with projects and pitches" should key opportunities arise. The London based Hungarian director got his first post film school movie gig in the large editing department of Steven Spielberg's Munich (2005) and now he's an Oscar nominee for his fourth short which has been picking up several prizes at festivals.  

Our chat follows..

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