Foreign Animation Thread (Past / Present / Future)

[Lnds500]

Originally Posted by celticmoon

^ Hadn't heard of that one... Looks like it could be interesting.

Anyway, I'm hoping some of the foreign animated films distributed by GKIDS last year will get BD releases, despite none of them being nominated for Best Animated Feature. I would import, but they're usually region locked with no English subtitles/voice tracks.

Zarafa, The Rabbi's Cat, and Le Tableu all look pretty interesting. I was pleasantly surprised that they released Michel Ocelot's Tales of the Night on BD earlier this year, so hopefully those will be coming soon as well.

Also, last year's Ernest and Celestine seems to be a pretty big hit that's being recieved quite well, so I wouldn't be surprised if it gets a Best Feature Nomination for this year and a subsequent US BD release. Hopefully it gets a decently sized theatrical release.

In recent year's, some theaters around me have gotten Chico & Rita and The Illusionist, but I can't recall any other foreign animated films besides the Ghibli films distributed by Disney.

I am planning on expanding the number of foreign animated films I watch. I grew up watching mostly Disney films but I had some VHS movies made by Toei in partnership with a Soviet animation studio and they were fantastic. I've managed to find them online and I keep watching them every once in a while. Makes you wonder how they could have ended up if history had been kinder to them. Through them I learned to appreciate foreign studios, even when the animation is "weird" or not on par with American productions.

I have Ernest and Celestine and all the rest you mentioned on my watchlist as well . Another one I'm interested in is the Russian The Snow Queen. I plan on watching that one before Disney's Frozen.