Eclectic Shorts by Eric Leiser(2006)

Otar Iosseliani, le merle siffleur(fr)

Georgian director Otar Iosseliani prepares his film Jardins en Automne. Nothing is conventional in the filmmaker's system: Julie Bertuccelli portrays the gestation and production of a film that seems to follow the freest and most unpredictable poetic intuitions of its creator. The constant and hilarious arguments with the producer, Martine Marignac, a Michel Piccoli transformed into an old woman, and the director's peculiar filming system, in which he signals his actors to start with a whistle, paint a picture of one of the most unclassifiable cinematic experiences in contemporary cinema.

Double King(en)

A king steals crowns from various other rulers.

Creation(en)

A lost submarine discovers a secret island where dinosaurs still live. The film, 20 minutes long, was scrapped by RKO. Approximately 4 minutes survived.

Suis mes pas(fr)

Seven-year-old Chloé imitates her big brother Théo doing tai chi on a snowy plain. A group of starlings are watching.

Find Me in the Mirror(en)

Ashley sees strange things and receives a mysterious message that leads her to enter another world of both wonder and horror. She must find her way through a series of quadrants, battle her inner demons, and transform into who she is destined to become.

Pat & Mat: DIY Troubles(cs)

The clumsy Pat and Mat are back in their movie Buurman & Buurman, experimenteren er op los! The two men face all kinds of challenges. For example, Pat and Mat try to bake pancakes in a hilarious way, they try to catch the apple thief by securing the apple trees and they even experiment with a homemade flying machine! And well, why would you go to a car wash when you can build one yourself? It only makes the car a bit dirtier ... All in all, experimenting is not easy for the neighbors, which means that this time and again things are going wrong ...

King Lavra(cs)

A king hides an embarrassing secret - and it causes him to execute every barber who cuts his hair.

Elton John: A Singular Man(en)

An in-depth portrait of British composer, pianist and singer Elton John, pop star and myth of modern culture.

Sternenstaub und Seelenvogel(de)

The Kids Find Candy's Catching(en)

Animation featuring the characters Bud and Susie.

The Nightmare Before Christmas(en)

Tired of scaring humans every October 31 with the same old bag of tricks, Jack Skellington, the spindly king of Halloween Town, kidnaps Santa Claus and plans to deliver shrunken heads and other ghoulish gifts to children on Christmas morning. But as Christmas approaches, Jack's rag-doll girlfriend, Sally, tries to foil his misguided plans.

Konigiri-Kun Concert(ja)

Don’t Leave Me(en)

A boy who is kicked out of his post-apocalyptic camp is forced to try and find a new home, as well as, civilisation without being caught by the unknown beings that lie ahead.

Viva Maria!(fr)

An IRA operative escapes to the Americas and teams up with a circus singer to create a popular vaudeville act. When the singer falls for a rebel, they leave the circus behind to become fierce revolutionaries.

Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger(en)

Princess Farah refuses to marry Sinbad until Prince Kassim, her brother, is able to give his consent. However, the Prince's wicked stepmother, Queen Zenobia, has changed Kassim into a baboon in order to have her own son crowned as caliph. Sinbad, his crew, the Princess and the transformed Prince travel to a distant land, fighting every obstacle Zenobia places in their path, to seek the advice of a legendary wise man who can possibly tell how to end the spell.

Hasan Everywhere(en)

Hasan Everywhere is an animation which broaches the subtlety of a relationship between a man and a woman who bear the passports of enemies, to sympathetically deal with the subjects of death, grief, lost opportunity; but mostly it seeks to demonstrate the possibility of friendship triumphing over the deepest of rifts between two people. In that regard it is most unusual among the standard fare of animated shorts.

Jesus Christ Saviour(de)

Klaus Kinski has perhaps the most ferocious reputation of all screen actors: his volatility was documented to electrifying effect in Werner Herzog’s 1999 portrait My Best Fiend. This documentary provides further fascinating insight into the talent and the tantrums of the great man. Beset by hecklers, Kinski tries to deliver an epic monologue about the life of Christ (with whom he perhaps identifies a little too closely). The performance becomes a stand-off, as Kinski fights for control of the crowd and alters the words to bait his tormentors. Indispensable for Kinski fans, and a riveting introduction for newcomers, this is a unique document, which Variety called ‘a time capsule of societal ideals and personal demons.’

Missing Link(en)

The charismatic Sir Lionel Frost considers himself to be the world's foremost investigator of myths and monsters. Trouble is, none of his small-minded, high-society peers seems to recognize this. Hoping to finally gain acceptance from these fellow adventurers, Sir Lionel travels to the Pacific Northwest to prove the existence of a legendary creature known as the missing link.

James and the Giant Peach(en)

When the young orphan boy James spills a magic bag of crocodile tongues, he finds himself in possession of a giant peach that flies him away to strange lands.

Dodu – The Cardboard Boy(pt)

A cardboard boy makes-believe inside a cardboard box. Dodu, the cardboard boy, is very sensitive and lives in a city wich is really hostile towards little children. So he spends many hours indoors, playing with Carica, his ladybug friend. Whenever Dodu scratches the surface of the cardboard box, he is able to create wonderful worlds inhabited by unusual creatures that help him to deal with his emotions and how to grow.