Report from Platform #1

Day one at Platform. Got into Portland around 2:30pm and was whisked to the very cool Ace Hotel. After a quick check in, I headed to a meeting of jurors (I’m one of the judges of the TV category). After that, one by one, I started running into friends from L.A., New York, Vancouver, Europe… Linda Simensky, Danny Antonucci, Bill Plympton, Tom Knott, Adam Snyder, Heather Kenyon and, pictured above, director Yvette Kaplan, producer John Andrews and author-animator John Canemaker. It’s begining to feel like a festival. The opening night screening was teriffic – every film shown was great. The standouts were Aardman’s new 2-D short, The Pearce Sisters (directed by Luis Cook), Apnee (directed by Claude Chabot) and Herzog and the Monsters (a student film by Lesley Barnes). That was followed by a party and even later was a mock debate/screening, “Humor vs. Abstract” with Bill Plympton (arguing humor) and Joanna Priestley (in favor of abstract).

If day one is any indication, this festival is going to be a winner.