June 12th, 2022 
Jackson Murphy 
The 2022 Tribeca Film Festival is in full swing, with in-person and at home premieres now through June 19th. This year’s “Animated Shorts Curated by Whoopi G” presentation features six shorts (selected by the Oscar-winning Goldberg) with grit, guts and major impact.
Poetic Tehura is set in Tahiti. A female dancer is performing for a mostly male audience. When one man seeks to form a connection with her, she declines and storms away. Tehura thinks back to when she danced as a child and what her culture means to her. Director Wei Li provides this statement to Animation Scoop:
“On both of my research trips to Tahiti, I enjoyed the hospitality of Matahii, an art teacher at the Conservatoire Artistique de la Polynesie Francaise. We’d spend days discussing the grips of Colonialism and what it means to be contemporary Tahitian. He told me, “You must make this film. We don’t have a story like this about Tahiti yet.” The immense support of the Tahitian dance community is what made this film possible. Tehura is for them.”
Powerful More Than I Remember chronicles the incredible journey of 14-year-old Mugeni, who escapes her Congo village being burned to the ground. She makes it to the United States and forms a bond with a family in Michigan, with the opportunity to reconnect with her family thousands of miles away. Director Amy Bench provides this exclusive statement to Animation Scoop:
“This film is meaningful to me on so many levels. I’m proud to have helped in telling the story of a young woman, Mugeni, who teaches us about courage and resilience. I’m trained as a cinematographer, and appreciate the craft of storytelling. I’ve chosen animation for this film as a way to respect the storyteller — and as a way to poetically visualize and talk about some of the psychological aspects of dealing with unprovoked violence and forced relocation. The animation is deeply layered and complements Mugeni’s voice and the lyrical nature of her words.”
Sweet and moving Pete, based on a true story, takes place in 1975. The title kid loves baseball and wants to play on a team. Pete’s supportive mom won’t let any negativity or anger stand in their way. This is a short about accepting change and seeing the best in everyone. Here’s director Bret Parker’s exclusive statement for Animation Scoop:
“As a queer director, I believe that by telling stories like “Pete,” we not only share the history and small battles that created change but bridge the experience of LGBTQ+ individuals with those outside our community. To continue to carve new paths and erase the notion that difference equals exclusion, sharing stories like “Pete” becomes a vital piece in our journey towards equality and understanding for the LGBTQ+ community. As an inspiration, change doesn’t always have to be grand — it can happen on a small sandlot in Winter Park, Florida and forever change a community.”
Lilith & Eve is a unique comedic twist on the “Adam & Eve” story, with bright animation and thought-provoking dialogue and commentary. Who truly is the first woman on Earth? Producer Manon Ardisson shares this exclusive statement to Animation Scoop:
“Lilith & Eve is a passion project I wrote with my life partner Sam de Ceccatty and which we dedicated to our daughters. I’m so proud this is Sam’s first animation as a director and couldn’t be happier with the result. Premiering at Tribeca is a dream come true, and we will be travelling to the festival with our daughters and with our amazing cast, including our best friend Conor Kennedy. Special thanks to Aimee Lou Wood and Susan Wokoma for believing in the project from the very beginning!”
The Originals is a special and inventive look at a group of guys reminiscing about “the old days” of living on a Brooklyn block. Their personal stories are both humorous and insightful. Co-producer Alfie Koetter provides this exclusive statement to Animation Scoop:
“When we started this project, animation was something that was firmly outside of both my and Cristina [Costantini]’s comfort zones. Cristina is a documentary filmmaker and I’m an architect by training, so to say that there was a lot we didn’t know how to do would be a massive understatement. But we accepted our shortcomings as creative constraints and leaned into what we did know how to do: tell stories and build models. I think that this encouraged us to develop a sort of lo-fi, crafty aesthetic that we wouldn’t have arrived at otherwise. We’re both proud to have challenged ourselves to get our hands dirty with a new medium, but more importantly we’re extremely proud to have been trusted by Matty “Square” Ruggiero and the rest of the Originals to help tell their story.”
And 28-minute Hardboiled is a stop-motion crime comedy that takes place in a talking food society. It’s bold, funny and incredibly detailed. You’ll want to watch it a few times to pick-up all the references. Director Peter Sluska shares this statement for Animation Scoop:
“Hardboiled is a satire riffing on the stereotypes and tropes inherent to crime dramas and police procedurals and was shot entirely in stop-motion animation. I’ve always been fascinated by stories that incorporate urban decay as a visceral texture (like The French Connection or The Wire for example) and thought by juxtaposing a gritty world with simple, food-based characters I could create a fresh perspective on a classic but overworked cinematic genre. It’s a personal project that I began chipping away at over 12 years ago, whenever the studio wasn’t occupied by a commercial project.”
The 2022 “Animated Shorts Curated by Whoopi G” presentation screens again in-person at Tribeca on June 13th & 19th. It’s available to watch at home beginning June 14th at 6pm Eastern Time. For more info on the entire festival, visit tribecafilm.com.
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