Visiting Lecturer Nominated For Oscar

Wendy Tilby, a visiting lecturer in the visual and environmental studies (VES) department, has been named one of this year's nominees for the best short animated film Oscar, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced last Tuesday.

Tilby, who co-directed the ten-minute film When the Day Breaks, currently teaches VES 53b and VES 156br, studio courses in which students learn various animation techniques and apply them to their own film projects.

Her film features a pig named Ruby, who witnesses the accidental death of a chicken.

"Originally, I had wanted to do an abstract film that was about...the composition of a person," said Tilby, who co-directed the film with Amanda Forbis. "Everything that happens to you, your history or your memories, are as much a definition of who you are as your bones or your cells or your nerves."

Tilby and Forbis started with human characters but ultimately decided to make their main characters animals in order to add humor and empathy to the story.

In early February, the academy issued a list of ten possible nominees for the award, so Tilby said she knew she was in the running. To become eligible, a short non-commercial film must first win at a competitive festival recognized by the Academy.

When the Day Breaks, produced by the National Film Board of Canada, opened at the Cannes International Film Festival last May and won the grand prize for short films.

"We went to Cannes and that was quite an experience. It's a pretty glamorous festival, but it was actually kind of nice," she said.

In the past few months, Tilby and Forbis have also picked up the Genie award--the Canadian equivalent of the Oscar--and a prize at the Annecy Festival in France.

Watching the film was "one of those things that you actually thought about for the rest of the day," said Claudia Santillan '00. Tilby showed the film to her animation students in class showings that also included several of this year's other nominees.

"It's a charming film in that it combines some very sophisticated themes packaged in a musical form," said Anouck Iyer, Tilby's teaching fellow in both of her animation courses. "It's light, even slightly silly, yet based on themes that any urban dweller, especially, can really relate to."

Tilby and Forbis drew the animation over video prints to give the characters a foundation in live motion and included two songs performed by Canadian pop-folk vocalists.

The pair met in 1985 as students at the Emily Carr Institute of Art and Design in Vancouver. Tilby conceived of the film and invited Forbis to join her in Montreal to create it.

This will be Tilby's second invitation to the Oscars. She received a nomination for her film Strings in 1992.

"It was quite an adventure, very nerve-wracking. You can't completely relax," she said. "This year should be fun because a number of my friends from Montreal are going down as well--two in the animation category."

"Hopefully we'll all be good sports about it," she added.

Tilby is now thinking about what to wear on Oscar night.

"This is the real problem--the shopping. I haven't had a chance to begin yet," she joked.

She said she is not particularly concerned about winning. Her biggest concern, she said, is the possibility of having to make another acceptance speech. Despite their past awards, she and Forbis are still nervous about getting on stage.

"We always flip a coin before these things to decide who has to speak first," Tilby said. "I think it's my turn, though."

The 72nd annual Academy Awards ceremony will air on Sunday, March 26th.