Canvas

The first temptating word to define it can be beautiful. Or touching, moving, special. But, in essence, it is a well crafted short animation reminding you to yourself. A grandfather and his granddaughter discovering a portrait in the basement. And new beginning of the life of the man losing his loved wife. All simple and precise. And touching. Short, a way to remind to yourself the significants pieces of life. Sue, the music has good role in this.

This short film was not advertised as it should have been. The beauty is in the words not spoken. The plot was easy to follow. The graphics were beautifully done. This was a beautiful Black short film. It should be acclaimed as such.

Grief is often one of the hardest things to get over, especially when it relates to the loss of a loved one. In the case of the indie short film Canvas by Pixar animator Frank Abney III, it centers around a grandfather who is trying his best to regain his motivation and influence around his granddaughter after a terrible loss in his life. After a successful Kickstarter backup to finance the project two years ago, the short was finally released on Netflix this month to rave responses from critics and audiences alike, and for good reason too.

As the film centers around an unnamed grandpa who spends time with his creative granddaughter, the film's biggest strength lies in its visual storytelling. Within the first minute, not only can we understand the pain the old man still has over the tragic disappearance of his family member, but we can also sense it through the time he spends with his family. Considering that Abney based said characters off of his own family, especially his grandfather and niece, it makes the film all the more personal around the theme of trying to keep the human spirit alive and healthy to do what you love. More often than not, we find our creative strength in the most unexpected places, because true imagination doesn't come out of force, it has to flow overtime. In the words of Abney himself to the Root journal, "As an artist and just as a person, in general, we deal with losses, and that affects us in different ways...it was just the idea of how kids can bring joy without really trying." They say the youth is the gateway to new horizons, and I strongly believe that for a better future.

Given Abney's background at Pixar, one can tell his experience at the studio really helped sell the short with no dialogue necessary. Every facial expression and gesture conveys how much pain is within the grandfather, and also how much joy his granddaughter brings to the man. Although one could argue the short could have been done in live-action, the fact that the film is animated gives it that extra spice of emotional resonance, and it also elevates the film's figurative and literal artistic strokes quite high. Some moments in the film are done in a 2D painterly style to evoke the idea of grandpa's inner artistic talent, and rightfully shown for subtle clarity given the aforementioned idea to allow your inner spark to come when least expected. In addition, Jermaine Stegall's score is effectively somber yet emotionally gripping without tugging at the heart strings too much. It also helps when the film is completely quiet to let the character's outer thoughts speak for themselves, as the best films do. Sometimes music isn't always needed to drive a film forward, but then you get those little spices to add to the experience.

All in all, Canvas is not only a well crafted short film in its own right, but it's a powerful reminder to keep fighting for what you love, no matter how long it might take. It may only be about nine minutes in length, but it has the time covered perfectly, especially given its strong subject matter and heart warming characters. If you are yet to check it out, by all means give it a watch as soon as you can. It's not everyday when a film tells us that it takes time to let your creative spark come back to you overtime, so it helps when an artist like Frank Abney III can do so through the art of animation and filmmaking.

That is honestly the only word I can use to describe my feelings when watching the film. It was fine. I was excited after Netflix hit it out of the park with If Anything Happens I Love You (2020) but this was just so fine. It didn't stand out against other shorts for me.

I really wanted it to tear my heart out and stamp on it but I watched it pretty stone faced. It looked fine and you could follow the story so it had that going for it.

I think the score let it down. It was the worst part for me. It didn't really sell any of the emotions and that is a very important part of a movie with no dialogue. It seemed indifferent to what was happening on the screen and seemed to just be doing its own thing.

So you could watch it and support people making shorts but I was really hoping for more.

Canvas has no dialogues; it simply doesn't need any. Like love, hope, family, memories, heartbreak, loneliness & inspiration - need no words, they are to be felt, and so does Canvas by Frank Abney. A celebration of human emotions. A heartwarming short film on Netflix.