compiled by Frankie Kowalski
It takes unique talent, persistence, and lots of creative confidence to be an independent filmmaker in today's animation global market, especially in the feature film arena.
I had a chance to catch up with some of the best for this month's island retreat--Bruno Bozetto (Allegro Non Troppo), Richard Williams (The Thief and the Cobbler [Arabian Knight]), R.O. Blechman (L'Histoire du Soldat) and Bill Plympton (The Tune).
Bruno Bozetto's top 10 picks if stranded on a desert island...
"Personally, if I were stranded on a desert island I prefer taking Sharon Stone rather than 10 films."
8 1/2 by Frederico Fellini
Fantasia by Walt Disney
Stagecoach by John Ford
The Gold Rush by Charlie Chaplin
Amarcord by Fredercio Fellini
Mr. Hulot's Holidays by JacquesTati
Bambi by Walt Disney
Star Wars by George Lucas
The Shining by Stanley Kubrick
Dances with Wolves by Kevin Costner
Bruno
Bozetto's Allegro Non Troppo"Working on an independent production taught me to give the right importance to the artistic ideas, never forgetting the commercial side of the matter. Sometimes it is exhausting to create under these conditions, because you are directly involved artistically and financially, but the liberty of action you have is absolutely invaluable".
Richard William's top 10 picks ...
Rashomon by Akira Kurosawa
Seven Samurai by Akira Kurosawa
Ikiru by Akira Kurosawa
Yojimbo by Akira Kurosawa
High and Low by Akira Kurosawa
The Quiet Duel Akira Kurasawa
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs by Walt Disney
Dumbo by Walt Disney
City Lights by Charlie Chaplin
Babe by Chris Noonan
Funniest cartoon: King Size Canary by Tex Avery
Best timing ever: One Froggy Evening by Chuck Jones
R. O. Blechman's top 10 picks ...
Serigraph poster done by Blechman
for exhibition at Gallery Bartsch and Chariau, Munich.
© R. O. Blechman
"This is probably a very incomplete list since 1) I haven't seen many films in the past several years and 2) I don't remember the names of some favorites (such as a Canadian film which came and went like a meteor. I saw it in The New York Film Festival several years ago, and it never found distribution. The Subject matter? A Canadian woman impregnated by an Italian tomato--I'm not making this up!) Anyway, here's my incomplete list..."
Citizen Kane by Orson Welles
Breathless by Jean-Luc Godard
Hate by Mathieu Kassovitz
Lamerica by Gianni Amelio
Woman in the Dunes (Suma no Onna) by Hiroshi Teshigahara (after all, I am on a desert island so I'd like the company.)
A Sort of Autobiography by Akira Kurosawa
The Magic Mountain by Thomas Mann (It's set in Switzerland, so that's nice for desert reading)
War and Peace by LeoTolstoy (The Simon & Schuster edition because it has a separate glossary of characters.)
Ulysses by James Joyce (because I never finished it).
The Idiot by Feodor Dostoyevsky (I read it years ago and loved it.)
Bill Plympton's top 10 picks ...
This Is Spinal Tap by Rob Reiner
Arsenic & Old Lace by Frank Capra
It's A Wonderful Life by Frank Capra
Dr. Strangelove by Stanley Kubrick
Baby Doll by Elia Kazan
The Producers by Mel Brooks
Reservoir Dogs by Quentin Tarentino
Akira by Mamoru Oshii & Katsuhiro Otomo
The Beast of the City by Charles Brabin
The Tune by yours truly
