Four Ottawa Programs

The Ottawa International Animation Festival, in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, really kept us hopping.  We presented four hour-long programs of UPA films, hence the “UPA 3” on the marquee image above, and each program was shown twice, so there were eight introductions to give, with Q&As after each one.  Each of the four film programs focussed on a different aspect of UPA, and was introduced via videotape on DVD, by a different animation expert; Tom Sito on the Early Trailblazers, Amid Amidi on the Designers, Mark Kausler on the Directors, and Jerry Beck on the Legacy of UPA.  Tee Bosustow was on hand at each of the eight screenings for introductions and Q&As.  The introduction by Tom Sito on the early formation of UPA can be seen in our theater.

This festival was no exception for meeting international animation artists, perhaps our favorite being Kaj Pindal and his life long sweetheart/wife Annie, both Danish, and both nearly life-long residents of Canada.  By the time we met them Kaj was no longer turning out shorts at the National Film Board of Canada, but living near Toronto and teaching at Sheridan College.  We sat with them to eat our picnic lunches and watch animation students carve pumpkins, a tradition started at the Ottawa festival.  Not a moment passed without one or more of Pindal’s students coming up to him and waxing sentimental about their classes with him and the profound effect he’d had on their animation lives.

Category: Festivals