Synopsis:
“Chain,” directed by Ling Han, is a 3D animated short film featuring charming characters and a sophisticated environment. It uniquely tells the story of the mantis catching the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind.
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Review by Andie Karvelis:
This was sheer perfection and I don’t say that lightly. It takes a village any time you make a film, but making an animated film can be even harder due to the characters involved. If they are animals who don’t speak you need to find a way of conveying emotion. Plus the task of making them endearing to the audience. Everything plays a part from the lighting to music to story to art style and this group of filmmakers nailed it.
Produced by Tzu-Ying Ho and Ling Han ( who also Directed the film ) found a highly skilled and talented group of animators, artists, look and lighting supervisors to give us an enchanting story about the circle of life. The look and feel of this film could fit into the Studio Ghibli realm of excellence. The world they created was realistic, vibrant and the right amount of anthropomorphism.
The story in and of itself made you feel empathy for the cicada, giggle at the antics of the spider and the mantis and feel the suspense when the oriole arrived on the scene. The music and sound effects added were brilliantly timed and helped heighten all those emotions. Sensational job to the entire team who worked on this!
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