Two Balloons

Greetings again from the darkness. Stop-motion animation is always fascinating to me, and when it's done very well, it can be downright mesmerizing. And that's what we have here thanks to Director Mark C Smith and Producer and Visual Effects artist Adam C Sager.

Two lemurs are navigating their dirigibles across the beautiful sky to meet up at a particular spot previously agreed upon. A messenger bird helps out so much along the way, one might call it a love bird. Their plan is disrupted by an ominous storm, but whether in the sky or at sea, love finds a way.

The film contains no dialogue, no narration, and there is no storyboard giving you background or detail. Just beautiful animation and lovely accompanying music. Maps, ropes, and scopes are all provided in such detail, and the long tails of the lemurs are constant and fluid in motion.

It's a dream-like 8 minutes that could be a wonderful bedtime story or video, regardless of one's age.

Can't wait to share this with my grandkids! Beautifully done! Great soundtrack. We'll watch it many times, I'm sure!

Love this! What a lot of effort went into making this film, brought together with a lot of love - the theme of the film itself. I believe that a child would enjoy this because the stop motion animation is really cool. Young children might not get the meaning behind it, which is quite wonderful. Or, maybe they will! You should know that there is no dialog but the story flows well, makes sense, the subject is handled well and it is watchable. The background music helps intensify scenes and is quite suitable for the subtle nuances of the film. The animation is truly AMAZING. It is a really cute short film and, even if you don't get the meaning behind it, you can still enjoy it. I recommend it for ages 10 to 18 as well as adults and give it 4.5 out of 5 stars. Reviewed by Julie S., KIDS FIRST! For more reviews of kid and family friendly films, visit kidsfirst dot org.

Two Balloons screened at the Kansas International Film Festival last month and was a festival favorite. This short won Best Animation and Audience Choice awards, sweeping the animation category. Two Balloons is beautiful down to every detail.

Two Balloons capped off the 2019 Rochester International Film Festival where it was very warmly received. This touching and engaging love story of two lemurs traveling great lengths to come together is told without the use of dialogue. The simple but engaging music and crisp animation tell the story effectively on their own. I was mesmerized from beginning to end.