The Flea Circus

Danemon Ban: The Monster Exterminator

January 1935 •Japanese

The boozy mercenary of the title, based on the actual historical figure of Naoyuki Ban (1567-1615), attempts to rid a haunted castle of spooks.

Elephants Dream

March 2006 •English

Elephants Dream is the story of two strange characters exploring a capricious and seemingly infinite machine. The elder, Proog, acts as a tour-guide and protector, happily showing off the sights and dangers of the machine to his initially curious but increasingly skeptical protege Emo. As their journey unfolds we discover signs that the machine is not all Proog thinks it is, and his guiding takes on a more desperate aspect. Elephants Dream is a story about communication and fiction, made purposefully open-ended as the world’s first 3D animated “Open movie”. The film itself is released under the Creative Commons license, along with the entirety of the production files used to make it (roughly 7 Gigabytes of data). The software used to make the movie is the free/open source animation suite Blender along with other open source software, thus allowing the movie to be remade, remixed and re-purposed with only a computer and the data on the DVD or download.

Ashes of Doom

January 1970 •English

A chain-smoking woman has an encounter with a vampire.

The Man Who Walked Between the Towers

April 2005 •English

One of the most exciting and memorable stories in the history of the World Trade Towers is that of Philippe Petit, a French man who walked a tightrope between the massive monuments in 1974. Narrated by Oscar nominee Jake Gyllenhaal, this is an animated adaptation of the lyrical Caldecott Award-winning book by Mordecai Gerstein. Directed and animated by Michael Sporn, with music by Michael Bacon (of the Bacon Brothers).

Bloomer Smokes Opium

October 1913 •Italian

A series of trick film hallucinations and scary doubling effects result when Patachon smokes an opium cigarette.

Bambi Meets Godzilla

July 1969 •English

Bambi is nibbling the grass, unaware of the upcoming encounter with Godzilla. Who will win when they finally meet? Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2009.

My Friend Friedrich

January 2003 •English

My Friend Friedrich opens on awkward, bespectacled Columbia student Nate having a heart to heart on the phone with his mother. Then, in a philosophy class, he almost succeeds in landing a date by lobbing an illustrated invitation at his love interest, Emma. All goes awry when a taller, more confident, bespectacled Columbia student cuts him off at the knees. So far, so very New York student film, but a conceit arrives to distinguish this story of Ivy League dating woes: the ghost of Friedrich Nietzsche appears before Nate to guide him towards self-actualization.

Poppety in the Fall

October 2012 •French

In this animated short, a terrible curse deprives Balthasar's kingdom of its stories. Taking the unicorn's horn back into The Belly of the Earth is the solution. Poppety will lead an expedition, by chance uncovering a hitherto closely guarded family secret.

Love in the Time of Advertising

March 2014 •German

An animated musical love story about a young man who lives inside a billboard and is charged with updating the advertisements. When he falls in love with a beautiful lady living across the highway, he has to use the only method he knows to get his message across - advertising

Film belge

April 1992 •French

Puff, the Magic Dragon

October 1978 •English

Jackie is a boy who is so trapped by his fears and doubts that he could not communicate with anyone. Then, a magic dragon named Puff comes to help Jackie by taking his soul force on a wonderous voyage to his island of Honah Lee. Along the way, they have adventures that nurture Jackie's imagination and courage in unorthodox ways.

How the Telephone Talks

April 1919 •English

"All sounds travel in waves much the same as ripples in water." Educational film produced by Bray Studios New York, which was the dominant animation studio based in the United States in the years surrounding World War I.

Hop Off

July 1928 •English

Only a few minutes remain of this partially lost film. A scientist discovers a potion that restores things to their original form: pets, jewelry--endless possibilities. His assistant wonders about its applications, with comical results.

The Flat

January 1968 •Czech

A man is trapped in a sinister flat, where nothing seems to obey the laws of nature.

Thumb Wars: The Phantom Cuticle

November 1999 •English

The hilarious story of a restless young farm-thumb, Loke Groundrunner, and his tasty companion, Princess Bunhead, who go on an quest to combat Black Helmet Man and the Evil Thumbpire.

Ice Age: Surviving Sid

October 2008 •English

Sid the Sloth takes a school of children out on a camping trip from home, only to find that in typical Sid style, he is not a very good guide and the children he takes with him don't have a very good time.

The Absent-Minded Waiter

July 1977 •English

Bernie Cates requests the services of the most absent-minded waiter he's ever seen, who pours water before setting the glasses, endlessly repeats questions, brings wrong orders, and ruins everything- but the bill.

Untitled Kinetoscope Comedy

March 1895 •English

An 1895 British short black and white silent comedy film featuring two drunken men and a boy squabbling in a small bar.

Gone Nutty

October 2002 •English

Scrat tries to finish his rather large collection of acorns when things start going nutty.

Brute Wanted

February 1934 •French

A tall, shy and reserved young actor accidentally signs himself up for a wrestling match.