German animator Xavier Xylophon was so impressed by autorickshaws when he visited Bengaluru, he made a short film about them. The film is a cyclical look at a day in the life of a rickshaw driver. It is easily distracted by extraneous sights and sounds and at several points, it totters on the edge of saying something insightful, but falls short.
While India provides backroom services to several foreign animation companies, few animators in the subcontinent make films about their own cities. The exception is students at design schools who draw and animate what they know for class projects.
Here are three films that go beyond the mundane.
1. Mumbai: Good morning, Mumbai
Students at the National Institute of Design came up with this gem on the typical morning routine of a man in a slum. The animation stands out for its rich visuals and complexity of camera movement.
2. Kolkata: The last rebel
A man goes to a beloved coffee shop where he discussed politics as a college student, only to find it completely altered. The film draws on the adda culture of Kolkata where intellectuals debate for hours on end at coffee shops.
3. Hyderabad: Yugapurushudu
These students must have been ardent fans of former Andhra Pradesh chief minister YSR Reddy. The film, set just after YSR's death, shows his conversation with Yama, the Hindu god of death, who wants to know why so few people have been dying of late.
While India provides backroom services to several foreign animation companies, few animators in the subcontinent make films about their own cities. The exception is students at design schools who draw and animate what they know for class projects.
Here are three films that go beyond the mundane.
1. Mumbai: Good morning, Mumbai
Students at the National Institute of Design came up with this gem on the typical morning routine of a man in a slum. The animation stands out for its rich visuals and complexity of camera movement.
2. Kolkata: The last rebel
A man goes to a beloved coffee shop where he discussed politics as a college student, only to find it completely altered. The film draws on the adda culture of Kolkata where intellectuals debate for hours on end at coffee shops.
3. Hyderabad: Yugapurushudu
These students must have been ardent fans of former Andhra Pradesh chief minister YSR Reddy. The film, set just after YSR's death, shows his conversation with Yama, the Hindu god of death, who wants to know why so few people have been dying of late.
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