Candy Can
CANDY CAN - SHORT FILM
2020, 9 minutes and 15 seconds, 4K
SYNOPSIS
A vulnerable boy needs to provide for his family but also has to train tirelessly to play in the game of his life
He pushes himself harder and harder trying to keep a balance between two very different worlds.
His imagination proves to be a good refuge from a darker reality, but when that reality becomes inescapable he’s faced with a difficult choice.
Can he reconcile his inner life with the necessities of the real one?
FESTIVALS
may 2020 - Germany - Stuttgart International Festival of Animated Film (ITFS) - Stuttgart
aug 2020 - Macedonia - Fiipbook Film Festival - Skopje
aug 2020 - Italy - Imaginaria - International Animated Film Festival (IAF) - Conversano
sep 2020 - Ukraina - LINOLEUM International Contemporary Animation and Media Art Festival - Kyiv
sep 2020 - Italy - Sciacca Film Fest - Sciacca
oct 2020 - South Korea - Bucheon International Animation Festival (BIAF) - Bucheon
oct 2020 - Serbia - BALKANIMA - European Animated Film Festival - Belgrade
oct 2020 - Greece - Thessaloniki Animation Festival (TAF) - Thessaloniki
oct 2020 - Turkey - Canlandıranlar Film Festival - Istanbul
oct 2020 - Georgia - TOFUZI International Animated Film Festival - Batumi
nov 2020 - Russia - The Big Cartoon Festival - Moscow
nov 2020 - Romania - Animest International Film Festival - Bucharest
nov 2020 - Argentina - Bit Bang International Animation and Digital Art Festival - Buenos Aires
nov 2020 - Portugal - Cinanima - 44th International Animated Film Festival - Espinho
may 2020 - Germany - Stuttgart International Festival of Animated Film (ITFS) - Stuttgart
aug 2020 - Macedonia - Fiipbook Film Festival - Skopje
aug 2020 - Italy - Imaginaria - International Animated Film Festival (IAF) - Conversano
sep 2020 - Ukraina - LINOLEUM International Contemporary Animation and Media Art Festival - Kyiv
sep 2020 - Italy - Sciacca Film Fest - Sciacca
oct 2020 - South Korea - Bucheon International Animation Festival (BIAF) - Bucheon
oct 2020 - Serbia - BALKANIMA - European Animated Film Festival - Belgrade
oct 2020 - Greece - Thessaloniki Animation Festival (TAF) - Thessaloniki
oct 2020 - Turkey - Canlandıranlar Film Festival - Istanbul
oct 2020 - Georgia - TOFUZI International Animated Film Festival - Batumi
nov 2020 - Russia - The Big Cartoon Festival - Moscow
nov 2020 - Slovenia - Animateka International Animated Film Festival - Ljubljana
nov 2020 - Romania - Animest International Film Festival - Bucharest
nov 2020 - Argentina - Bit Bang International Animation and Digital Art Festival - Buenos Aires
nov 2020 - Portugal - Cinanima - 44th International Animated Film Festival - Espinho
nov 2020 - Estonia - PÖFF24 - Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival - Tallinn
dec 2020 - Slovenia - Animateka International Animated Film Festival - Ljubljana
dec 2020 - Greece - ICONA Ionian Contemporary Animation Festival - Corfu
dec 2020 - Poland - International Animation Film Festival - Animafest Gdansk - Gdansk
feb 2021 - Belgium - 40th Brussels International Animation Film Festival - Brussels
mar 2021 - Spain - Animac - 25a Mostra Internacional de Cinema d'Animació de Catalunya - Lleida
apr 2021 - Netherlands - Kaboom Animation Festival - Amsterdam
apr 2021 - Brazil - Lanterna Mágica - International Animation Festival - Goiás
may 2021 - Germany - 67th International Short Film Festival Oberhausen - Oberhausen
jun 2021 - France - Festival International du Film d'Aubagne - Aubagne
DIRECTOR’S NOTE
When life becomes too overwhelming we all find different ways to coping with it. For a child this comes much easier because the boundaries between imagination and reality are very blurred. The young boy, Titus, is a champion of childish hopefulness and limitless ambition but his dreams of a better world are so strong that he chooses repeatedly to ignore any dangers of the real one.
He works hard to be the best he can be and misses no opportunity in making up games. As he grows up he might have to abandon his own version of the world with the ideal girlfriend, a family, a real home. In this ideal world money has no value, even though he understands the need for money, because he is a provider himself, he takes care of his younger brothers and is selfless to the point of sacrifice, but his inner world has no need for money.
There are many symbols and metaphors through out, but the can is the most relevant symbol in the story. Everything begins and ends with the love-hate connection between the boy and the can.
It’s a toy for play, it’s a piece of trash that litters his home, it’s a way of providing for his family but ultimately it’s also a trap. The bear head is his own childhood that’s struggling to find a place in his life. His hair plays a more subtle role, it grows longer and snaps back to shorter because he is essentially stuck in between worlds and in between growing up.
Things fall in and out of focus, the style is rough and ever changing and sometimes characters are reduced to simple outlines of themselves.
The boy is so shielded in his wishful thinking, in his pursuit of happiness, that he becomes vulnerable to an inescapable reality.
You might call him the ultimate dreamer but the question remains for the viewer : are these illusions helping him cope or are they just naive distractions keeping him from any genuine change? Can he grow up and hold on to them or simply let go?
FILM CREDITS