RIFT

Rift:

  • a fissure, crevasse,
  • a clear space or interval,
  • Estrangement.

„RIFT“ is an animated short which tells the story of a mountain climber named Walther and his inner struggles. It’s a master’s degree project by animation students of the University of Applied Sciences Salzburg.

Synopsis

Walther’s pressure grows more and more as the hazardous surroundings become tougher and tougher and his innermost fear splits from his own self and transmutes into a demon. This creature invisibly influences Walther’s actions and decisions and tries to prevent him from reaching his goal.
His journey ultimately comes to a halt as he faces a breach in the mountainscape. The climber is about to give up, but realizes that an even bigger “rift” in his past led to the birth of his demon. He has to face his inner fears and finish his journey to come to a close.

To illustrate the melodramatic topics and the picturesque mountainscape the film uses animated characters with realistic proportions but abstracts them by using expressionistic textures and frayed outlines, forming its own style to oppose the light-hearted tone of western mainstream animation. Through visual means Walther’s world of thought blends between delusion, memory and reality.

Awards

Austrian Independent Film Festival 2017 – Vienna – Official Selection

Under the Radar Award 2017 – Vienna – Official Selection

Juvinale Salzburg Film Festival 2017 – Salzburg – Official Selection

Shortynale – Klosterneuburg – Official Selection (Klosterneuburg Competition)

Stills

scene05-03A_Web rift003 aniR16_004 aniR16_005 scene09-01_Web rift002
 

Links

MultiMediaArt-Portfolio

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