Mathilde Bédouet’s César-Winning Short ‘Summer 96’ Is The Perfect Summer Treat

Today’s Cartoon Brew Pick is Summer 96 (Été 96) from French director Mathilde Bédouet and producers L’heure d’été and Tita B Productions.

Last year’s French Academy César Award-winner for best animated short, Summer 96 is a rotoscoped 2d animated film that follows the misadventure of Paul, his family, and their friends, as they all find themselves trapped by the tide on Callot Island after Paul’s father uses the wrong calendar to plan their trip.

A serene nostalgia quickly turns to stress and anxiety as adults begin to fight, and Paul, scared of swimming, is forced to confront his fears. A complete change in color scheme and smart use of sound design heighten the tension felt by Paul, transmitting it onto the audience.

“The story of this film was born out of a box full of camcorder cassettes that I found in my father’s cellar,” said Bédouet when we spoke with her last year after her film earned qualification for the Academy Awards. “Despite the holidays’ overall joy, I remembered it also as a moment of solitude, a period of childhood where we find ourselves between two worlds. The world of children and one of the adults, without being part of either. It’s the time when we realize that we can only count on ourselves,” she explained.