From The Other Side

Inspiration comes in many forms and I would not necessarily have thought that a charming animated short could have been inspired by the works of contemporary Polish sculptor and collaborative artist Paweł Althamer despite the wonderful nature of his work.  Yet that is what Warsaw based Czosnek Studio has done.

It tells the story of two flat mates, a cat and a dog. It is a rainy night and the poor weather just adds to the cats feeling of listlessness and boredom. So, the dog concedes that it is about time that they took one of their trips together – and so they head, literally, to the other side. The pair certainly do not end up quite where you might expect.

It’s pretty zany stuff but was created (and funded by the Zachęta National Gallery, one of Poland's most notable institutions for contemporary art) and kids will love it for the characters as well as their adventure. It also serves, perhaps, as an introduction for the young to the effect of complex non-verbal communication performed by artists in interaction with each other; this, after all, is at the heart of Althamer’s artistic philosophy. It is done to great effect here and is a great example of how animation can work simultaneously on so many different levels.