Coin Operated

Winner of the Crystal Award at the 2017 Palm Springs International Festival of Short Films.

Subtle metaphors that we can all relate to. An emotional short that explains everything in a very short time.

I thought this was so moving. A little boy's dream is to go into space. When he sees one of those supermarket rides where you put a nickel in the slot, he thinks this is the opportunity. Of course, all it does is go up and down and side to side. What happens next is what we do when we have passion. Of course, it's not realistic, but it's touching.

This animated short is made using CGI and is quite lovely. My only complaint is that the film looked a bit jerky...and the smoothness I expected in such a film isn't quite there. This could be due to me seeing a bad copy on YouTube. What I do know for sure is that the animation, despite this, looks quite nice.

The story is about a boy who desperately wants to become an astronaut and spends his entire life selling lemonade in order to make his somewhat insane plan come true. Worth watching and cute.

I am not a fan of short films for children but I can say that this one intrigued me at the end of the viewing. A young boy with a passion for space discovers a rocket kiddie ride and decides to try it by inserting a coin. Disappointed that the rocket didn't go into space as he had planned, he decides to open a lemonade stand to get more money to go further in the kiddie ride. Several years later, the young boy, now an old man, sees the machine that will make him a child again. The story seems a bit short but the director's message is eloquent for older viewers. The graphics are beautiful and colorful. No wonder this film won 2 awards in the year of its release.

I find it a little sad, as the boy has to hang on to his dreams for so many years.