''Lipsett Diaries'' () is a 2010 short animated documentary film about the life and art of

collage film Collage film is a style of film created by juxtaposing Found footage (appropriation), found footage from disparate sources (archival footage, excerpts from other films, newsreels, home movies, etc.). The term has also been applied to the physical ...

maker

Arthur Lipsett Arthur Lipsett (May 13, 1936 – May 1, 1986) was a Canadian filmmaker with the National Film Board of Canada. His short, avant-garde collage films, which he described as "neither underground nor conventional”, contain elements of narrative, d ...

, animated and directed by Theodore Ushev and written by Chris Robinson. The 14-minute film was produced by the

National Film Board of Canada The National Film Board of Canada (NFB; ) is a Canadian public film and digital media producer and distributor. An agency of the Government of Canada, the NFB produces and distributes documentary films, animation, web documentaries, and altern ...

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

, where Lipsett had worked from 1958 to 1972, before committing suicide in 1986. The film is narrated by

Xavier Dolan Xavier Dolan-Tadros (; born 20 March 1989) is a Canadian filmmaker and actor. He began his career as a child actor in commercials before directing several arthouse feature films. He first received international acclaim in 2009 for his feature ...

Inspiration

Ushev was inspired to make a film about Lipsett, after Robinson had forwarded him an email where the late filmmaker was discussed. Until that point, Ushev had never heard of Lipsett. He began to do some research and was surprised to learn that Lipsett had lived on the same street as him in Montreal. Ushev went to the building where Lipsett once lived and met with the

concierge A concierge () is an employee of a multi-tenant building, such as a hotel or apartment building, who receives and helps guests. The concept has been applied more generally to other hospitality settings and to personal concierges who manage the e ...

, who showed him a locker where belongings from former tenants were stored. There, Ushev discovered a small blue notebook with "Lipsett" written on it, containing notes by the late filmmaker.

Production

The film was animated by hand-painting the frames, using computer editing to link the images. Ushev estimated that 40 frames were painted per day during production. ''Lipsett Diaries'' was Robinson's first attempt at screenwriting.

Reception

''Lipsett Diaries'' received the Genie Award for Best Animated Short at the 31st Genie Awards. In June 2011, it received three awards at the 2011 Golden Sheaf Awards: for

Animation Animation is a filmmaking technique whereby still images are manipulated to create moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited on film. Animati ...

, the Founders' Award, and Best of Festival. ''Lipsett Diaries'' also received a Special Jury Award at the

Annecy International Animation Film Festival The Annecy International Animation Film Festival (, officially abbreviated in English as the Annecy Festival, or simply Annecy) was created in 1960 and takes place at the beginning of June in the town of Annecy, France. Initially occurring ever ...

, a Special International Jury Prize at the Hiroshima International Animation Festival, an audience award at the Melbourne International Animation Festival, Best Canadian Film at the

Ottawa International Animation Festival The Ottawa International Animation Festival is an annual animated film and media festival that takes place in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The OIAF was founded in 1975, with the first festival held from August 10 to 15 in 1976. Initially organized b ...

, special mentions at the Bravo!FACT Awards and Worldwide Short Film Festival in Toronto, Best Animated Film at Clermont-Ferrand Short Film Festival, and the grand prize at the Rencontres internationales du cinéma d'animation in

Wissembourg Wissembourg (; South Franconian: ''Weisseburch'' ; German: ''Weißenburg'' ) is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Grand Est in northeastern France. Wissembourg was a sub-prefecture of the department until 2015. The name ''Wissembourg'' ...

. At the end of 2010, the film was included in the

Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the most prestigious and largest publicly attended film festivals in the world. Founded in 1976, the festival takes place every year in early September. The organi ...

's Top 10 Canadian films of the year.

References

External links

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Filmmaker's blog
{{Prix Iris for Best Animated Short Film Canadian animated documentary films Documentary films about film directors and producers 2010 short documentary films Films directed by Theodore Ushev Canadian animated short films National Film Board of Canada animated short films National Film Board of Canada documentaries Documentary films about mental health Best Animated Short Film Genie and Canadian Screen Award winners Films set in Montreal Documentary films about the cinema of Canada 2010 animated short films 2010 films Canadian short documentary films French-language Canadian films 2010s Canadian animated films Best Animated Short Film Jutra and Iris Award winners Animated films set in Quebec Animated films set in the 20th century