claymation short about totalitarian vegetables?

January 5, 2008 12:54 PM

Anyone know the title of and where I could locate a claymation film from the early '90's about vegetables living in a communist or totalitarian regime?

I've searched all over Google and can't find it anywhere - it was a film short that I saw at a film festival while in college in 1995 so I think it's from sometime in the early '90s. I'm amazed how every question on here seems to get an answer so I'm hopeful I might finally figure it out. Thanks!

posted by 8699oriel to Media & Arts (6 answers total)

Jan Svankmajer, perhaps? Some of his works ("The Death Of Stalinism In Bohemia", for example) are certainly overtly political, though it's been a while since I've seen his stuff, and therefore can't remember if I'm conflating some of his works involving food with his political stuff. (Well worth checking out, though, either way.)
posted by ubersturm at 1:26 PM on January 5, 2008

I know what you're talking about - might it have involved pasta, rather than vegetables, and was it shot in an heroic, newsreel style? I recall flying farfalle.
posted by migurski at 4:18 PM on January 5, 2008

Best answer: I've seen it! It's called "Canfilm" -- canned fruits & veggies constantly pledging allegiance to different vegetable rulers? My memory is that I saw it on a VHS collection of animation; I can't remember the name of the collection but it was on the same tape with a hilarious short called "OK, Tex!" Maybe that will give you something to go on? It wasn't Jan Svankmajer if this is the same piece; it was definitely by an Eastern European.

Aha! Google turns up Canfilm, which gives the name of the director ( Zlatin Radev).

Good luck!
posted by nibs at 6:35 PM on January 5, 2008

Response by poster: Wow - you guys are geniuses. It is indeed Canfilm and I don't think I would have known what to Google to find it correctly without this. I just discovered this website and to me, it seems like the evolution of Google, either that, or its readership must be a bunch of geniuses. Thanks guys for all the tips!
posted by 8699oriel at 7:41 PM on January 5, 2008

Response by poster: Here's the Google thread that contains more information on the film - I guess this makes me redundant, but I wouldn't have gotten to it.
http://answers.google.com/answers/threadview?id=105828
Thanks again.
posted by 8699oriel at 7:44 PM on January 5, 2008

Response by poster: Here's a link where the video is in stock:
http://www.facets.org/asticat
Do a search for "Animation Celebration" and you can purchase the video. I've been unable to find it elsewhere (both times I found it on half.com et al. it turned out to be out of stock after I tried to purchase it).
posted by 8699oriel at 5:00 PM on January 22, 2008