CHRISTMAS SHORT FILMS - 2
Knick-Knack by John Lasseter (1989) (USA) (3m) *
Six years before he changed cinema with the release of his animated feature Toy Story, John Lasseter made Knick-Knack, which is not explicitly a Christmas short film, but feels like one because it centres on a snowman stuck in a snow globe. Desparate to join the other toys on the fun end of the shelf, our hero employs all manner of tactics to escape his glass surroundings but to little avail. Can he escape his prison?
Treevenge by Jason Eisener (2008) (Canada) (16m)
Treevenge is a Christmas comedy horror co-written by Jason Eisener and Rob Cotterill, who had recently made the fake trailer for Hobo With A Shotgun as part of Quentin Tarantino's Grindhouse experiment. They went on to actually make a feature film called Hobo With A Shotgun, which says something about something. Treevenge is a Triffids-inspired short movie where the ill-treated Christmas trees take their bloody revenge...
Argentine Tangos by Guy Thys (2006) (Belgium) (14m)
Arguably the best Christmas short film yet made, Argentine Tangos (Tanghi Argentini), was nominated for a Best Short Film Oscar in 2008. In Argentine Tangos, a beautiful comedy drama full of Christmas spirit, we follow a middle-aged office-worker trying to fulflil his Christmas passion and conceal a snowy-white lie. I promise you will thank me for showing it to you. It is in Dutch with English subtitles.
