News Sketches

Even as a young boy, Beethoven marched to the beat of a different drummer. Trained in the traditional music methods by his father, Beethoven was an accomplished pianist by the age of 12. But he yearned to try new sounds and persevered until audiences heard his music. By his early twenties, this persistent young man performed for Joseph Haydn, who compared him to the great Mozart. Sadly, Beethoven began to lose his hearing, but he threw himself even more deeply into his music, composing "Fur Elise," "Sonata Pathetique" and the dramatic "Fifth Symphony" years later, audience members heard what he could not and leapt to their feet in ecstatic appreciation for such passionate music. His creativity gave the world then, as it does today, music that stirs the soul. The video begins in 1827 with 30,000 people paying tribute to the great Beethoven in Vienna, Austria. Then the video switches to his life as a child...

Wilshire Pig and Sheldon Snail discover a map to uncover Doctor Frankenswine's monster. All kinds of mishaps ensue in their quest.

Mickey Mouse, piloting a steamboat, delights his passenger, Minnie Mouse, by making musical instruments out of the menagerie on deck.

Donald visits Daisy. When he can't open a window, he flies into a rage and practically destroys her house. She won't see him again until he takes care of that temper. He orders a mail-order insult machine, which promises that if Donald can endure 10 minutes of abuse without losing his temper, he'll be cured. It proceeds to deliver physical and verbal abuse, and Donald is cured. He goes back and Daisy tests him on the balky window.

For some reason, Donald adopts a baby. It turns out not to be a duck, but a kangaroo. Donald takes little Joey home and tries to make him take a bath, with the help of the friendly lady of the adoption bureau on the telephone telling him what to do. After the bath, Donald's baby is scared by the rug made of a bear.

A narrator sings the opening stanzas of the classic poem while we see the house at rest. Santa lands on the roof, comes down the chimney, and opens his bag. The toys march out and decorate the tree, with the toy soldiers shooting balls from their cannon, a toy airplane stringing a garland like skywriting, and the toy firemen applying snow. A blimp delivers the star to the top. Meanwhile, Santa fills the stockings. His laughter awakens the children, who sneak out. The toys rush to their places, and Santa escapes up the chimney just in time.

Devils fall in love in Seattle in a black comedy of sex, machines and flight. Photographed a frame at a time over three days, 1+1+1 shows us the wordless tale of unlikely lovers, the first appearing as a hovering devil in flight, excreting a vegetable life, while her's clock-spitting, bathing-besuited figure lifts weights in a frank measure of indifference. Their touch promotes a shimmering aura of light, a celestial forcefield which they lash against, finally retiring to the kitchen with a clutch of tools to fine tune desire. Could I fix you? Donning each other's clothes, they fly off together to the strains of Strauss's Blue Danube Waltz.

Advertising for the 7th War Loan. Animation with intertitles in verse form, altering the expression of John Bull by the respective war bonds into a grimace.

Mama Buzzard wants her children to learn to bring back meat for dinner. One buzzardling is shy and has to be kicked out of the nest. He's told to at least bring back a rabbit.

A snipe that lives with a pelican in a lighthouse must continually keep his pelican friend from harm when he flies in his sleep.

The animated documentary deals with a new intensity of longing during the first lockdown in Germany.

Donald is trying to collect a condor's egg when the condor returns. He hides inside an empty egg and regrets this when the large, warm mother returns. He regrets it even more when he "hatches" and mama encourages him to fly. And mama proves to be even more protective than Donald would like.

First in a series of medieval giants. Inspired by the artwork of Jakub Różalski.

Donald is shoveling the snow off his walk; Chip 'n' Dale are shoveling their branch. Donald tricks them into shoveling his walk. Angered, they sneak into his house, where he's getting ready to make popcorn. They've never seen this before, but they love it. They stow away in the box, then make off with the bowl of popped corn.

A young boy dreams of being a cowboy. After he gets the basics, as outlined in the title song, he's attacked by Indians. He runs out of bullets and manages to lasso them. He smokes the peace pipe with their chief. A robber is holding up a stagecoach and he rides to the rescue, refusing the reward. He also saves a train from a dynamited bridge, and a girl tied to a cactus, before riding into the sunset (and back to his suburban bed).

It's the 1890s, and Donald is riding his penny-farthing bicycle to see Daisy when Chip 'n Dale make fun of him. It quickly escalates into a full-fledged war between Donald and the chipmunks.

Donald and Goofy are driving across the desert, apparently the Sahara. The car breaks down (out of gas), and they start walking. Before long, they are out of water, and are seeing mirages of soda fountains and icebergs. Fortunately, they find a camel.

The animation tells the story of a small, innocent bunny who, despite his kindness and curiosity, faces hidden dangers and sinister forces around him.

This experimental animation approaches Hong Kong’s built environment from the conceptual perspective of celluloid film, by applying the technique of film animation to the photographic image. The city’s signature architecture of horizon-eclipsing housing estates is reimagined as parallel rows of film strips: Serial Parallels.

A boy is pursued by a witch while taking a walk.