Paperman - A Beautiful Short Film

Disney released the animated short, "Paperman" back in November 2012.  It went on to receive the Academy Award for best animated short.  This came as absolutely no surprise to anyone.  This short is beyond amazing.  What makes it amazing?  Right off the bat, the story is just so strong.  Set in 1940's Manhattan, this short follows the story of George, a young man (perhaps late 20's) who is having an average commute to work, when he finds himself standing on the train platform next to Meg.  Before he can notice her, one of his papers is taken by the wind and hits her in the face.  He pulls it down and sees her beauty, but before he can say anything, she boards her train, leaving him with nothing but a lipstick kiss on his piece of paper.  He then proceeds to work, visibly disappointed that he didn't get to speak to the beautiful woman.  This disappointment immediately fades when he sees her through his window, across the street.  He proceeds to fold over a dozen paper planes, attempting to send them all from his skyscraper to hers.  I won't give any more of the story away, but it really is absolutely charming and romantic.  It shows how disappointing a missed connection can be, and how great it is when we manage to reconnect.

The fact that this film is in black and white really helps establish the setting in a big way (1940's Manhattan).  The one thing about color that I absolutely love about this piece is that her lipstick is the only thing in color.  Her lips are kept a beautiful deep maroon, and the lip stain on the paper is a beautiful pink.

There is absolutely no dialogue in this short.  This beautiful and romantic story is told with absolutely no words.  We have foley and a beautiful score (composed by Christophe Beck).  It is worth opening the film in a tab and just listening to it.  The score is that well done.

The visuals are what really help sell Paperman more than anything.  In Paperman we see a 3D film, which looks like it has been hand drawn.  According to director John Kahrs, "We brought together as best we could the expressiveness of 2D drawing immersed with the stability and dimensionality of CG".  A video of John Kahrs describing/showing this process can be found below:

The top link is the actual video.  I would highly recommend just watching it 2D but in the highest form of HD your connection will accommodate.  The visuals are just stunning.  All elements combined make the short truly deserving of its Oscar win last year.