“…When the homeland becomes foreign, the foreign becomes the homeland.
(Thomas Mann, 1941)
Berta and Solomon are migrants, hoping for a better life. They brought their own bathtub with them, but will they manage to connect it to the water system?
Home/land is a cut out and drawn animation film currently in production in the Open Workshop made by Uri and Michal Kranot. Uri and Michal are from Israel but have lived and worked in Denmark for several years now. They are both guest teachers at The Animation Workshop.
Home/Land is about immigration, integration and at its core is the story of a relationship. How a couple deals with a demanding situation: Berta and Solomon are emigrating from their homeland and about to have a child. It is a commentary about displacement and the pursuit of a ‘promised land’. In their effort to adjust to a new environment, both social and climate; Berta and Solomon find themselves in conflict with bathroom fixtures, and with each other.
Their new home is very different than what they had imagined; most notably, the authorities are highly present in their personal lives. Idealist Berta and sentimental Solomon just can’t connect their past and hopes for the future with their present state.
Disillusionment and pressures of conformity lead to a great, gladiator-style battle. Yet, Berta and Solomon emerge from their struggle more loving and optimistic than ever, enough at least to try their luck elsewhere.
An interactive animation installation is to be based on this short film. The goal is to activate and engage the audience in the story as they move through the space and view/participate in the film. Accompanied by a live musical performance, the main part of the installation is set in a bathroom; segments of the film are projected into a sink, tub, and toilet filled with water. Sensors throughout the space trigger different reactions from the characters and animated environments. The visitor is encouraged to use the plunger, to flush the toilet, or pull the plug, and by doing so transforming the experience.
Home/Land is a co-production between The Open Workshop and Mark Film in Denmark, les Films de l’Arlequin in France, the French Film Institute (CNC), the broadcaster ARTE and the Dutch Film Fund. The filmmakers are planning a collaboration with the national Film Board of Canada as well.
Michal and Uri have both graduated with highest honours from the Animation Department at Bezalel Academy of Art & Design, Jerusalem, Israel where they subsequently have been teaching. They have been working in different animation studios as directors, head animators and story boarders, and have participated in several festivals with their previous animation films which have won quite a few awards.
Home/Land credits list:
Director, writer, storyboard: Michal and Uri Kranot
Producer: TinDrum Animation, Michal Kranot; Les Films de l’Arlequin, Dora Benousilio, Marie Bro; Mark Film, Kasper Kruse; CNC; ARTE; The Dutch Film Fund and The Open Workshop.
Director of Photography: Uri Kranot
Art Director: Michal Kranot
Lead Animators: Michal and Uri Kranot
Additional animators: Mark Film
CG: David Tousek
Compositing,VFX: Les Films de l’Arlequin
Sound and Music: VektorMusic
Composer: Uri Kranot
Set Design: Michal Kranot
Model Maker: Ari Pfeffer
Armatures: Ari Pfeffer
