The 26th ifva Awards
Animation Category Jury Meeting Transcript
Jury Members: Lo Che-ying (Lo), Ho Ka-ho (Ho), Kong Kee (Kong), Mak Shing-fung (Mak),
Hsieh Wen-ming (Hsieh)
Organizer representative: Kattie Fan (Fan), Sammy Wong (Wong)

Fan:

Thanks everyone for acting as our jury members and watching the 10 finalist works. Today, ourmission is to select the awards for the Animation Category from these 10 works. Let’s discussthese works first and select one Gold, one Silver and one Special Mention Award. If you don’t
have any further questions, we will discuss the works one by one. The first one is Mountains andSeas - Village of Muds.

Mak:

The story is very good; it is taken from Classic of Mountains and Sea, but with some variations. I
feel the work strikes a good balance between the story and the distinctiveness of the content. It isrelatively calculated and is the first in a series. In terms of uniqueness, it does not contain a lot of
unexpected things. This is what I felt after seeing this film.

Lo:This animation is done very well and professionally in all aspects. He includes every animation
technique he can muster. The story is well-told, and is like a TV drama, which does not feel very
fresh to me. I like its theme, which is touching to me. In addition to being very entertaining, thework also carries a moving message. It is a very beautiful work. Generally speaking, this work isvery similar to a commercial film, and is handled professionally and well, and commercial works
that are handled well are rare.

Ho:

Let me also chime in. I think this work is very professional, but does not seem to be independentenough. This may be a problem. Every aspect is done very well and precisely. Hong Kong people
will have a lot of feelings when watching this film, and will make them laugh in parts. I think it’sdifficult to make a humorous film, and this work does a good job in this respect. I actually
laughed out loud. The expressions and movements of the character are well done and the rhythm
is good.

Lo:

It is calculated, but being calculated is not easy. Telling a story well is no easy task, and it is hard
to have good dubbing and music.

Kong:

I want to see if the work expresses something that this competition wants to encourage. I think
every aspect of this work is well executed.

Hsieh:I am very touched by this film. This funny and humorous work is very good, and the theme really
touches me. Although I am a Taiwanese, I can really understand what it is about.

Fan:

If you don’t have anything more to add, let’s move on to the next work, BLANKET TALK.

Lo:

I like this very much.

Mak:

It works on two levels. The first one is two children playing and chatting under the sheets, and thesecond one is probably the earthquake in Taiwan. There are several points that make the audience
wonder whether the children are dead. Through dialogue and animation, the creator takes theaudience into the story, and the layout is quite intricate and unique.

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Lo:

I like the art direction of the work. The whole arrangement is very good. At first, I thought it isjust about two young brothers and sisters who are playing and laughing, but it turns out to beabout the environment after an earthquake. They are in a very special situation. The content ofwhat they say can be bigger. They talk about the world after death and their parents, but I feel thatis not enough. If they can go deeper and talk more, the final reveal about the environment after
the earthquake will be more powerful and moving. On the whole, it is still a very good work.

Ho:

I very much agree with Lo Sir (Lo Che-ying). The first part relies on dialogue, and the animation
is not done well enough. Compared with the dialogue, the visuals are inferior. The children’s
dialogue is very naive and cute, but the contrast between their dialogue and the meaning behind it
is not apparent, even though I was still able to catch the feeling behind it, and felt many different
emotions. The first time I watched it, I thought it was just about two children chatting. At the end,
when I realized it was about an earthquake, I thought the story was very interesting. I think it's apity that the story is not well paced, and the animation is not very good-looking. These are theshortcomings.

Kong:

My thoughts are similar. The first time I saw the twist, I was pleasantly surprised. The children
are likable, but there were not many things I could savor when I watched it again.

Hsieh:

This work is done by a student in our school. She is good at writing scripts, and very good at
writing about daily life. These two children are very cute, and the animation can be a bit richer,but overall, it is quite complete.

Fan:

If there are no other opinions, let's go to the next work, Be With Me.

Mak:

The creator is a very mature illustrator from Hong Kong, who is responsible for the visuals,
character design and story. The various aspects are well coordinated and the whole work issmooth. By comparison, Mountains and Seas - Village of Muds. is more varied. The target
audience for this work may be people familiar with his illustrations, and are probably quite young.
There are not too many variations within the work and the sound is relatively monotonous. The
whole work just uses music to create emotions, with few variations.

Lo:

The visuals look like a picture book, like a moving picture book, and the length is very long at
more than ten minutes long, with music throughout. The animation is not very rich, it relies
mainly on beautiful pictures but there are no special camera movements, etc. The overall feelingis relatively flat. Although there is a climax, the overall feeling is a little flat. You have to becareful when watching it, otherwise your attention may drift. The work is more like a sketch.

Ho:

The work is too direct. As Lo Sir said, it is straightforward. In the last meeting, Kong Kee
mentioned the music, so I paid special attention to it this time. It may be different if shown in acinema, but I felt the story lacked impact and the story is not conveyed very well by the music. I
think it would be better for him to add some sound effects. It is basically a very complete work,
but there are no surprises.

Kong:

My feelings are also similar. In fact, all the works are perfect when viewed independently, butwhen you look at them together, there are bound to be comparisons. This work is relatively dull,with few surprises. It is a pretty and decent work, but does not leave any lasting impressions in
my mind.

Hsieh:

Generally speaking, it's a little flat.

Fan:

The next work is Buoy.

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Mak:

I like this work very much, especially the art direction and visual treatment. I don’t know if this isa feature of works from Taiwan Arts University. I can already guess that many works come fromthis university, like Neon from a few years ago. Perhaps it is due to the influence of the teachers. I
like this kind of style. This work deals with water, and the treatment of ear ringing sounds whenswimming is very meticulous. But I didn't have very strong feelings after watching it. The work
deals with very personal feelings, so I was not able to identify with it. I was only able to enjoy
the visual and sounds. It would definitely be better to see it in the cinema, because I didn’t feelmuch when watching it alone.

Lo:

The overall execution of art direction, overall animation and sound effects is very good anduniform. I can see that it is a very personal work that expresses the creator's feelings. To me, it isa relatively plain and quiet work, without many messages. There are many elements in the work,
but we can't feel them because they represent the director's personal feelings, which are not fully
expressed. It is a plain, but nevertheless nice-looking work.

Ho:

The work touched me a lot. It deals with very internal feelings. If a person feels that he can’t
integrate into society, they could appreciate this work. The first time I saw it, I wrote somecomments. Nothing much happens in the story, but for people with this kind of personality,
buying a cup of coffee and facing other people are big events in their lives. I felt the work is welldone, the animation and art direction are good. If you can identify with the emotions of theprotagonist, you will understand that every conversation with people in ordinary life is a big deal.
I can identify with this and I like it very much. If you have had similar experiences, this work will
resonate with you. The visuals are beautiful to look at.

Kong:

My feelings are similar to that of Ka-ho. The film does a great job describing inner feelings andunderwater sounds. In terms of its creative imagination, the way it visualizes certain scenes andthe design of characters, the originality is a little bit lacking. I like it, but compared to other works,
it is not very special.

Hsieh:

This is also the work of a Taiwan Art University student. The editing, visuals and composition arevery powerful. I agree with what Ka-ho said. The creator really wants to express the feeling ofpeople suffering from emotional illness and how they turn small things into big matters, which isvery good. The creator is still a student and has a lot of potential. As a student work, it is quite
okay.

Fan:

The next work is BALLOONS.

Mak:

This work uses minimalist means to make animations. Perhaps it’s a student work. The story issimple to grasp. It reminds me of another work, The Employment, both are slow-paced andrelatively static, but there are more variations in The Employment, with more job types
represented, and it also expresses people’s statuses and identities at work and home. I don’t wantto compare the two works, but in this film, the variations are smaller and talks about work
environments only. It is simple and direct, and expresses the message behind it well.

Lo:

I think the story is too minimal, a bit too simple. It is very short and without much impact.
Although I knew what he wanted to say, in terms of expression, it is just a balloon floating up anddown. With balloons, you can imagine certain specific expressions, and there are no surprises.
This metaphor is very normal, and the use of black and white is very visual. The movements are
small and intricate, but I still feel that it is too simple.

Ho:

I feel the same. I think the work has too little content. There are only two or three scenes with3

story content. There is a person withdrawing money, a mother and a child are floating and sinking.
Except for these, the other scenes are very slow. There is only one message, which is that working
makes people feel heavy. This single point is not enough to support a few minutes long animation.
Hsieh:

I also think it is too simple.

Kong:

My feelings are similar. When I saw it for the first time, I liked its artistic direction, largely
because of the tasteful visuals, but compared to other works in this competition, it is too simple
and I can’t find any depth. My feelings are similar to everyone else’s.

Fan:

If there are no further comments, let’s move on to the next work, Kill Danny.

Ho:

It's a work worth talking about. I find it very interesting. The creator said that what he wants toexpress most is "fun." In fact, you watch this animation for its sense of fun, which is to fight andkill and pay tribute to old movies. If you look at it from the animation production perspective, it's
not very good, but the creators are not after refinement, they just want to have fun. If that’s what
they are after, they could do better with the editing and rhythm. Some details are either
deliberately not explained or left out. The protagonist’s background is not explained. I saw on the
director’s Instagram that he will explain why he omitted certain things in the story. As far asanimation production is concerned, I think certain aspects can help tell the story better, especiallythe editing. Some parts feel too long, like the fight on the train. If the director just wants people tohave fun watching it, then he has succeeded.

Hsieh:

I also like this animation very much. I didn’t expect everyone else to like it. The fighting scenes
are not easy to do. There is a lot of humor and refreshing designs. The director has succeeded inthis respect, but the editing can be improved. Some of the fight scenes go on for too long andbecome a bit boring, but it is a very successful and funny animation.

Lo:

It is a very self-gratifying work. The creator just wants to express the possibility of animation by
including scenes from their favorite Hong Kong movies. They are greedy and may not have toomuch experience, so the handling of some scenes is not good enough, while some scenes can beshortened and certain movements are not handled well. The work is too long, although there is a
lot to look at. It is not balanced, but because of its length, the audience will not go away
disappointed; there is plenty that is fun to watch. Despite some flaws, it still deserves to betreasured. It does not have any special themes or story. It keeps your attention because of whatgoes on in each scene, and the story is carried forward with action scenes. This is hard to do and arare achievement.

Ho:

I want to say one more thing. Although its length is a shortcoming, I think the film is crazy. When
we make animation, we usually try to make it shorter, but this creator is not afraid to make it long,so I think it is laudable.

Lo:

They sure work hard.

Mak:

I think this is a youthful work. Mature works tend to be calculated based on experience, and must
consider budget constraints. Compared with this work, some films may also have calculated
intentions, but are unable to achieve them due to insufficient experience. Lo Sir said that it may
not be very balanced. But in unexpected places, one can see the time and effort they put in. It is awork of passionate youths. The story is fragmented and scattered, but this is not what the creator
cares about. They like old Hong Kong movies, which still affects people from this generation.
This is a good idea, they put in elements that they like.

4Kong:

It's a work with a very independent spirit, and embodies a “just do it” spirit. In competitions, I
long to see this kind of work. Many works aim for perfection and completeness, but he does notcare about these things. This spirit touches me a lot.

Fan:

The next work is GUNKWORLD.

Ho:

I don't have any special opinions about this work, I just find it interesting.

Lo:

I don't really appreciate it.

Hsieh:

I think it's funny. I only just realized it's a Singaporean work, I assumed it was Japanese.
Sometimes one sees animations like these that don’t play by the rules in film festivals. It is a very
special addition on this list, and even though I may not select it in the end, it is very special and
fun.

Ho:

It might be interesting to edit it into small segments and put them on Instagram.

Mak:

Or turn them into a four-panel comics or short comics. I’m not sure if the creator has simply
turned illustrations or comics into animations. The work is fragmentary, but each part is beautiful
and interesting, and it’s hard to feel satisfied after watching it because it’s too fragmented. I don’tknow whether the final ending wants me rationally understand or analyze it. It seems
unreasonable, but it seems that it is not crazy or parodic enough, it’s neither here nor there. Of
course, it is very interesting and playful. The advertisement is very interesting and is infused withmany different cultural characteristics. This is what makes it special.

Kong:

I like this work, but I also understand everyone's criticism of it. My feelings are mixed. I agreewith everyone's criticism, but I still like it very much.

Ho:

If you like it, you like it.

Fan:

The next work is HereAfter.

Lo:This work has many shortcomings. The script can be better written. There are two worlds, one is
the world of heaven and soul, the other the world of humans, and there is also the part involving
memories, so the balance of these three parts is very important and not easy to achieve. There are
only four characters, and I think it’s a bit inconsistent. In terms of art and design, sometimes they
are funny, sometimes they are not. The handling is a bit inadequate, the director has insufficientexperience, and some emotional expressions are not very good. I think there is a problem withthe dubbing. There are too many sounds like “ahh” and “ehh”, which are useless. It can be better.

Ho:

When I watched it, I knew it was a student work. As a student work, it should get an "A". You
said that there are many details that have not been executed well. I also talked about this in thelast meeting. The director wanted to create a worldview, but he was not able to connect the twoworlds properly. There are also some problems with the animation, which may due to the work
having been done in haste. If the director can spend a year fine-tuning these details, it will bebetter for him to resubmit it next year. But we can't give him credit just because it’s a student
work. In terms of animation, he did a good job overall. Although the storytelling is not very good,
there are many things that are solid, such as using a different drawing style in the memory part.
This kind of treatment is relatively dull. The design is nice to look at, but it’d be better if there are
more details. The moving graphics at the beginning is meant to attract the audience, but there
are not enough frames, so it is a flaw.

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Mak:

This is a work by a student from our school. We quite admire the story, which is very touching.
But as you said, I think it was completed in haste, which is apparent especially in the second halfwith the plot and detailed arrangements. This work is not too different from others. It tells a story
in a conventional way, which’s difficult to do well. In addition, the lack of time and manpowermeans that some of the details are not handled well, and there are not too many fresh perspectives.
The aesthetics is not above average. I was expecting something special, but it never appeared.

Hsieh:

Technically, it is clear that this is a student work. In the second half, some shots are notcompletely drawn. But I think the scene design is a success, and I was drawn to it from the very
beginning. The paper offerings tied to the roofs of houses are beautifully designed andsuccessfully executed. I agree with what everyone said about the rest.

Kong:

I really want to compare Kill Danny with this work, not visually, but comparing it with a student
film. In fact, the resources enjoyed by Hong Kong independent animations are hardly more than
graduation films. I am just using my intuition to compare the two works, since I don’t know thecreators. Whether a work can be done well depends on the pre-production. The preparation of Kill
Danny can be very simple. If they have the ability and resources, it can take longer, but if not, it
doesn’t matter. But for HereAfter, it needs to have a great deal of pre-production, you need tohave good arrangement, time management and production. This is a problem often encounteredby independent productions, which can be seen in this work. This concept behind this work isvery good, but it is not fully realized with strong production capability.

Ho:

I think the creator wants to construct a world view. In terms of independent production, he hasachieved it. He has a worldview, but not one with much detail. It is important for there to beadequate pre-production at the beginning to figure out how to tell the story well.

Fan:

The next work is How My Grandmother Became A Chair, which is a Lebanese work.

Lo:

The idea of this work is very interesting, about a person becoming a chair. The relationshipbetween a chair and a person leaves a lot to the imagination. You can sit on it or carry it on yourback. This is a very interesting metaphor. There are many small details in the film that allows
people to see the changes in the old granny, and one can also see the relationship between her andthe servant, but overall, there is only one idea and not much more. For example, when changing
into a chair, a person’s face may change, but are there other areas that also undergo changes? The
creator could have dug deeper. What relationship does this chair have with its surroundings?
You can fill in a lot more detail. If developed well, this can even be a feature film. Now there’s
just one idea, that she changes into a chair and that’s it. I think it's not enough. But its art, settings,
and character design are all good, leaving you with a deep impression at first glance. The subject
matter could be very moving, but I wasn’t touched.

Ho:

I didn't understand the story too much the first time I saw it, and then I watched it the second time.
The first time around, it feels a little scary, because the servant is portrayed as an animal. I
wondered if I understood their culture, perhaps that’s the way they view servants? This family hassome problems. Everyone ignores the old granny. But this point is not expressed well. At first, I
only assumed they are naughty and noisy kids, but later I realized this family has a big problem.
When watching it the first time, I focused on the servant, because the character looks a bit scary.
When I read the director’s statement again, I realized that the creator wanted to talk about therelationship between the servant and the old granny. She always regards her as an animal, but inthe end, the servant sticks around to look after her. It is easy to move people with stories aboutfamilies, but this is not well portrayed in the animation. Its style is very unique, however.

Lo:

If you didn't read the director’s statement, would you understand the story?

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Ho:

That’s right, I wouldn’t have understood. It is a pity that this is not expressed in the animation.

Mak:

I also agree with what everyone has said. Some details of its story are not expressed clearly, but I
was touched by the film, probably because of my own experiences. The changes in therelationship between the old granny is shown through changes of the chair, which I was able toappreciate as the animation progressed. I don't like the ending when everyone walks off with thechair. Can this be expressed better? But I do like this work, but as you said, there are some details
that can be improved.

Hsieh:I was also touched by this work, perhaps due to my personal experiences. I was touched by thestory about taking care of the elderly, it resonated with me. It is not so perfect, but it touched me.

Kong:

My views are similar to everyone else’s. The process of turning her chair into a chair is a bit
insubstantial. I like the design, character relationships and visuals.

Fan:

The last work is Closet.

Lo:

I don’t like this very much. It’s nothing new, just about a person who shuts himself off from theworld. Many young people are like this now. It’s a big problem. But there are no new points ofview that the creator brings out. In terms of animation performance, it’s a bit strange. The
protagonist’s world is filled with texts, but I don’t know why they are all in Japanese. The use of
text is not very effective, they just occupy the screen. They raise some questions, but offer noparticular opinions. It is not meaningful enough.

Ho:

I really need to chat with the director to find out what her intentions are. I want to ask why she
uses VR. If you use VR, you should make use of this media to tell a story. But now it doesn’t
seem to be relevant. I don’t know why she chooses to do things this way, why we end up in thecinema at the end. I don't quite understand. Then, at the end when the skeleton comes out, it is too
straightforward. All along, we don’t really understand what’s going on, and then when theskeleton and the text come out, it is too direct. I think it’s better to leave it to the audience’s
imagination. I find the work interesting, even though I don’t understand what she is doing.

Mak:

I like it when the skeleton comes out of the closet, which brings to life the phrase “coming out of
the closet". This sort of thing can only be expressed through animation. The use of this twist
makes the work interesting. I don't understand what she wants to say in the end, is she
deliberately hiding the meaning, or making the audience think? There is not much for me to think.
I like the character who wants to communicate with others but at the same time wants to hidefrom people. Talking about one’s childhood experience is nothing special, but it caused me toreflect. I like the ending, which matches the theme of “coming out", but only the creator knows
the precise meaning. She also has a VR version. Is she only trying out this new media, or did shereally make use of the 360-degree perspective? I'm not sure if VR helps the work a lot.

Hsieh:

This is a Taiwanese work. This version is not VR. The drawing is a bit ordinary, but the concept isgood concept. There is a sense of suspense at the beginning, which makes me want to find out
what will happen to her. The protagonist feels nothing even when the girl undresses in front ofhim, and his parents do not allow him to go out. I don’t know why the ending is like this. Why theuse of skeleton? Because it is a student work, the idea may not be conveyed accurately. But she
manages to create a sense of suspense that makes me want to find out what happens at the end.
The scriptwriter is successful in this regard.

Kong:

My views are similar to everyone else’s. What I care more about is the visuals and how it matches

7with the art design and atmosphere of the film, and the relationship between these elements are
not too close. The visual texture and the film’s atmosphere don’t line up. I care more about this.
Ho:

Hearing you say that, I have a question for everyone. Do you think that the style of this film isrelated to the topic? This is a very cute style. Does it match the content?

Kong:

The work is very cute, but the contrast between the style and content is not big enough. If thecuteness is related to the darkness of the theme, I would appreciate it. But now the style is too
normal.

Fan:

After discussing all ten works one after another, now do you have any works you want tonominate for the prizes? We can talk about the distribution of awards.

Lo:

We can each choose three works and see what works are included.

Fan:

In order to narrow the choices, everyone can pick some works that you think are worth discussing,or if there are works worthy of the Gold award, you can nominate them directly.

Mak:

I think Kill Danny is the most unique work among the finalists. There are a few other works thatare complete and calculated, but this one is the most youthful and carefree. I don't know if itshould get Gold, Silver or Special Mention. Another choice is Mountains and Seas - Village ofMuds, which is a very complete and beautiful work.

Lo:

Aside from Kill Danny and Mountains and Seas - Village of Muds, do you have other award
nominations?

Mak:

The others are pretty similar for me.

Kong:

I have made my choice. Mountains and Seas - Village of Mud, GUNKWORLD and How My
Grandmother Became A Chair. I am open to discussions. My overall feeling is that all the works
are pretty good on average.

Ho:

It’s a tough choice. I have chosen three. Mountains and Seas - Village of Mud, my main
consideration is independent spirit. Also, How My Grandmother Became A Chair, both theseworks are strongly independent. And Buoy.

Hsieh:My choices are the same as Ka Ho.

Lo:

My choices are these three: Mountains and Seas - Village of Mud, Buoy and Kill Danny.

Mak:

I am leaning towards How My Grandmother Became A Chair, even though Buoy is also close, but
I don’t have much feelings for it, I feel more for the former.

Fan:

Now we have narrowed our choices. Mountains and Seas - Village of Mud, Buoy, Kill Danny,
GUNKWORLD and How My Grandmother Became A Chair all received votes. Works thatreceived the most votes are not necessarily the best. Among these 5 works, which one do you
nominate for Gold Award?

Ho:

Actually, I feel that BLANKET TALK is also very good, but my quota is used up.

Lo:ifva does not have many awards, just Gold and Silver. Sometimes we give out two Special
Mentions as encouragement because there are many good works. I choose Kill Danny as the Gold

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Award. For ifva, independent production methods and ideas are very important elements.
Fan:

Lo Sir nominated Kill Danny as the Gold Award, right? Kong Kee hasn't made his choice yet.

Kong:

I have no objections.

Hsieh:

I choose How My Grandmother Became A Chair because it is very touching. Although drawing
skills of the work are not too special, when the chair slowly changes, it is just like the granny
slowly aging while the outside world is also changing. I feel the creator’s concerns for old people,
which moved me.

Fan:

There are now two nominations for the Gold Award.

Kong:

I think Kill Danny is good, but I haven't decided which work should get Gold Award. I need sometime to think it through.

Ho:

I think Kill Danny is independent. In terms of artistic merit, it is not higher than other works. It isjust a purely fun animation. Other works have some messages, but Kill Danny has none. I preferworks with messages and some artistic merit. Previously, I had wanted to give Kill Danny theSpecial Mention.

Lo:

I have heard comments by some people about ifva's award-winning works in the past. Many
works that we judge to have independent spirit are not so good artistically. Maybe they are
student works, so they were forgiven because they were very passionate. Perhaps this is the spiritof ifva, but it is a competition after all, and it should strike a balance between various aspects.
ifva is a benchmark that allows people to measure the quality of works, so I think finding abalance is very important. Kill Danny has its own problems. We should choose winners fromamong the five that are good in all aspects and are more representative.

Kong:

When we discuss Kill Danny, we emphasize that it is very passionate, but Mountains and Seas Village of Mud is also passionate, it’s just that the former is a little bit more so. The time and costinvested in the latter shows how passionate the creators are, but the story is not a linear one. If I
were to choose, I would give Mountains and Seas - Village of Mud higher marks than Kill Danny.
You can't ignore a work’s strengths just because you like another one more. My dilemma ischoosing between Mountains and Seas - Village of Mud and How My Grandmother Became A
Chair. The former feels strongly of a first episode. When other people see Mountains and Seas Village of Mud, would they understand why we chose it? Would they be surprised that the pilot
episode of a series won a prize? Its story is very moving. How can we compare it with How My
Grandmother Became A Chair, what criteria should we use? The two are very different works.

Ho:

The most awkward thing is that Mountains and Seas - Village of Mud is considered morecommercial. Frankly speaking, it is the best animation among the finalists, but I don't knowwhether its independent spirit and creative intentions conflict with the principles of ifva. I don't
know how to judge.

Lo:

Some people may think that since Mountains and Seas - Village of Mud is a commercial work on
the surface, why should ifva give it an award? But from another point of view, Mountains andSeas - Village of Mud surely has certain intentions, but it is not easy to convey profound anddistinct themes within a commercial work. Mountains and Seas - Village of Mud manages toachieve this. Looking at it from another angle, it conveys certain unique ideas, which fit well withthe spirit of ifva. It is not an ordinary commercial TV drama, nor is it something that you watch
and then quickly forget. How My Grandmother Became A Chair is obviously a very meaningful

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work. It takes up a good metaphor that of a person becoming a chair, but the expression can bebetter, although it is already not bad.
Mak:

Kill Danny and Mountains and Seas - Village of Mud are my favorite works. As Ka-ho said, they
represent a balance between two aspects. Mountains and Seas - Village of Mud is calculated andwell-rounded, while Kill Danny is strange, fragmented and incomplete. Which one you like is amatter of personal preference, some people like distinctive works, others like more mainstream
works with a twist. After listening to your opinions, I prefer Mountains and Seas - Village of Mud.
At first, I was a bit hesitant about choosing such a commercial film for ifva. However, as acommercial work, it has introduced some variety into the genre, and it is more complete than Kill
Danny, so even from the perspective of ifva, Mountains and Seas - Village of Mud is the more
superior work. The two are actually very close. This decision is very personal.

Hsieh:I was touched by Mountains and Seas - Village of Mud. I feel it is a brilliant work.

Lo:

The dialogue is well-written, with few wasted words. This work won a prize last year at Japan’s
DigiCon6. Even though the Japanese saw the work with subtitles, they were able to feel thepower of the work, which is remarkable.

Mak:

Giving the Gold Award to Kill Danny seems unsatisfactory. It’s be better if the creator was able totie up the fragmentary segments with a story. Now it just feels unsatisfying.

Kong:

What Lo Sir said has convinced me. Comparing Mountains and Seas - Village of Mud with How
My Grandmother Became A Chair, the latter has not done its best within its own confines, while
Mountains and Seas - Village of Mud made me feel it has exceeded itself. My ranking is asfollows: Gold Award for Mountains and Seas - Village of Mud, Silver Award for How My
Grandmother Became A Chair and Special Mention for Kill Danny.

Lo:

Some works lets you come away satisfied. Mountains and Seas - Village of Mud is more than 10
minutes long. After watching it, I think I have received some messages and I feel satisfied. How
My Grandmother Became A Chair is just a little off the mark, and that's the difference. In terms ofawards, Kong Kee’s choices are acceptable to me.

Ho:

If you think Mountains and Seas - Village of Mud is compatible with ifva, then I go along withKong Kee. I think we should talk about Buoy a bit more. It is also very beautiful.

Lo:

Can we give Special Mention to Buoy?

Fan:

Why don’t we decide on the three works first?

Ho:

I would like to say a few more words about Mountains and Seas - Village of Mud. Every time I
hear a line of dialogue, I would look back at the animation. Not only do I feel satisfied, I can see
how the dialogue matches the animation. If there is no conflict with ifva competition, I think
Mountains and Seas - Village of Mud is an outstanding work.

Lo:

I think there is no conflict, but the reason why I picked Kill Danny as the Gold Award at the
beginning is because of what people had said about ifva winners in the past few years. That is,they feel that ifva is mainly about independent films, and independent means different fromcommercial films or using different means of expressions compared to commercial works. If it isa student work and the technique is not good, it doesn’t matter because it is independent. So, if afilm like Mountains and Seas - Village of Mud received an award, some people will query why
such a commercial film won ifva, but if Kill Danny won, no one will say anything. But if you

10compare the two films, you can see the difference. If you understand what is distinctive about
each work, you should recognize what is good about Mountains and Seas - Village of Mud, andyou will agree that it deserves the Gold Award. Among the ten works, it is the best in its
animation technique.
Fan:

I should add some information about ifva’s concept of independent spirit. Every competition has
its own stance and unique features. Over many years, ifva has believed that independence andoriginality are our most cherished elements. As Lo Sir pointed out, in the past, animations withoutstanding styles tend to win, but ifva has 5 categories in total, such as the Open Category andAsian New Force. Works in these categories are very professional even compared to so-called
commercial works, with very polished techniques and narrative forms. In the juror’s notes eachyear, we mention the qualities that we think are important, but will not specify the weighting ofeach criterion. Depending on the current situation and social atmosphere, people will havedifferent opinions of the works. For example, the way you compared the three works had never
happened in the past, and may be due to the current situation of Hong Kong and Asian animation
scene. Back to the current situation, we have been discussing these three works, it is better todecide on them before dealing with the others. Mr. Hsieh, you mentioned that your nomination
for the Gold Award is How My Grandmother Became A Chair.

Hsieh:

I changed my mind. Now my choice for Gold Award is Mountains and Seas - Village of Mud.

Fan:

So Mountains and Seas - Village of Mud will get Gold. Do you all agree? If so, should Silver goto How My Grandmother Became A Chair?

(The jurors agree.)Fan:

Should Kill Danny get Special Mention?

(The jurors agree.)Fan:

Now that we have made a decision about the three films, how about Bouy? Ka-ho, would you liketo lobby the other jurors?

Ho:

Bouy is highly artistic and is beautifully made. But its story is not detailed. The creator uses thisanimation to bring out some messages and the animation technique is good. Dealing with water
also takes courage because it is hard to do. Among all the works, the technique of this one is the
best.

Fan:

Neither Vincent (Mak Shing-fung) nor Kong Kee chose Buoy.

Mak:

If you compare Kill Danny to Buoy, the former uses elements from Hong Kong movies andcontains a variety of action scenes, so it is more impactful. Buoy is beautiful, but I don’t havestrong feelings for it, even though the visuals and sound are well done. In terms of impact, Kill
Danny is much greater. If I have to choose just one, I would choose Kill Danny.

Hsieh:

A gentle film like Buoy is at a disadvantage in a competition like this.

Ho:

Can we have two Special Mentions?

Fan:

It’s not impossible, but it’s best if we keep it to one. If you think the two works are of similar
quality, we can consider giving two Special Mentions, but from your previous discussions, it
seems that people prefer one over the other.

11Animation Category Award Winners

Gold Award
Mountains and Seas - Village of Muds
Nicboy(Hong Kong)
Silver Award
How My Grandmother Became A Chair
Nicolas Fattouh(Lebanon)Special Mention
Kill Danny
Leung Chun-tat, Law Lok-hei, Wu Hau-chung(Hong Kong)

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