Independent animation has become readily accessible with the popularization of online video, but there's still nothing like seeing this visual art on the big screen. Fans get a special treat in about a jerk forced to confront his good side after growing wings.
The movie premiered last spring at the Tribeca Film Festival, and has since played at animation-focused and general fests around the world, racking up awards as well as fans for Plympton. It's busy run continues through the winter and this spring, and is now confirmed to screen in Madison at the Your Face in 1987 and Guard Dog in 2005. He has also animated many more short and feature films, commercials, and other creations under the banner of Plymptoons.
As with many of his other works, this new film tells its story via fantastically malleable human forms, and is set to music sans dialogue. The soundtrack comes from a variety of sources, including Hank Bones, Nicole Renaud, Corey Jackson, Rachelle Garniez, Didier Carmier, 3 Leg Torso, Tom Waits, and Pink Martini.The official trailer for Idiots and Angels follows.
Several videos that feature Plympton discussing his work on Idiots and Angels can also be found online, including an impromptu animation roundtable at the Tribeca Film Festival, some brief red carpet comments and a longer sit-down interview at the AFI Film Festival, and a book signing in France. Then there are his animations themselves, many of which have been shared online by fans. Sprawling across many formats, they include a musical introduction to the Bonnaroo Music Festival, a montage from his 2004 feature Hair High, the music video for "Don't Download This Song" by Weird Al Yankovic, another music video for "Heard 'Em Say" by Kanye West, a mid-'90s vintage Taco Bell commercial touting its late night menu, and a promotional short for the Windows 95 release. Many others can be viewed here, with longer collections available for purchase directly from Plympton.
More information about Idiots and Angels can be found at Facebook, as well as the MySpace page for Plymptoons. The animator discussed the movie last year interviews with AMC and Gothamist, as well as in Variety, Time Out New York, and the Village Voice, as well as in acommentary by animation professor Mark Mayerson. More reviews are listed in the press page for the film.
The eleventh Wisconsin Film Festival runs from Thursday, April 2 through Sunday, April 5. Tickets go on sale on Saturday, March 7.
