Urs

This is one of two films of merit that were shown along with the five Academy Award-nominated animated shorts. I was excited to see it, as it's another animated short from the Film Academy of Baden-Württemberg--a film school that has a TON of wonderful films to its students' credits (including Oscar-winning "Das Rad").

While "Urs" is a good film, it clearly was not as distinguished a film as the nominees. The most obvious difference is the animation. While it is stylistic, it's also rather simple. This can also said about the story itself--very simple. I wasn't all that impressed by it but my friend who went to the show with me that it was great--and he enjoyed the sentimental tale about a man who moves with his elderly mother from their home to a new home in a valley across the mountains. My verdict is that it's a very impressive student film and I'd love to see more from them once they gain more experience. Great for a student piece.