''Pro and Con'' is a 1993 9 minute

16mm 16 mm film is a historically popular and economical gauge of film. 16 mm refers to the width of the film (about inch); other common film gauges include 8 and 35 mm. It is generally used for non-theatrical (e.g., industrial, ed ...

short Short may refer to: Places * Short (crater), a lunar impact crater on the near side of the Moon * Short, Mississippi, an unincorporated community * Short, Oklahoma, a census-designated place People * Short (surname) * List of people known as ...

animated film Animation is a method by which still figures are manipulated to appear as moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited on film. Today, most ani ...

produced, directed and animated by

Joanna Priestley Joanna Priestley (born November 25, 1950) is an American contemporary film director, producer, animator and teacher. Her films are in the collections of the Academy Film Archive in Los Angeles and the Museum of Modern Art in New York. Priestley ...

and Joan Gratz using drawings on paper, pixillated hands and object animation. The "Pro" section of the film was written by Barbara Carnegie and Joanna Priestley and narrated by Lt. Janice Inman. The "Con" section was written by Jeff Green and narrated by Allen Nause. The sound was designed and produced by Lance Limbocker and Chel White with music by Chel White. Pro and Con was commissioned through the Metropolitan Arts Commission's Percent for Art Program in Multnomah County, Oregon.

Synopsis

Pro and Con investigates life in prison through two monologues: one by a corrections officer (Lt. Janice Inman), and the other by Oregon State Penitentiary inmate, written by Jeff Green. The guard is concerned both with the inability of our current prison system to deal with the increasingly violent nature of crime and the cyclical nature of crime within families. The inmate reflects on the isolation he feels- how much he misses not only his wife and family, but also such mundane activities as riding in a car. Pro and Con features self-portraits that were drawn by inmates at the penitentiary and object animation of weapons and crafts that were confiscated from inmates.

Release

The film was re-released on DVD in 2005 by Microcinema International, and was screened in a retrospective of Priestley's work at the OpenLens Festival in 2009.

Reception

Stephen Holden of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' called the film "''another outstanding short by Joan Gratz and Joanna Priestley''".{{cite news, url=https://www.nytimes.com/1993/12/04/movies/review-film-a-man-s-best-friend-can-wear-the-pants-and-dabble-in-sleuthing.html, title=Review/Film, last=Holden, first=Stephen, date=4 December 1993, work=

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

, accessdate=17 January 2010 Rebecca S. Albitz, of ''Pyramid Film and Video'' called the film "a brief but excellent exploration of the thoughts and emotions of those working and living in our prison system."

Awards and recognition

* Director's Choice Award, Black Maria Film Festival * Gold Award, Cindy Competition * Worldfest Gold Award, Worldfest Charleston * Gold Eagle Award, CINE Competition * First Prize, Birmingham Educational Film Festival * Honorable Mention, Annecy International Animation Festival * Honorable Mention, Northwest Film and Video Festival * Honorable Mention, Bombay International Film Festival * Honorable Mention, USA Film Festival * Honorable Mention, Columbus Film Festival

Festivals

* Bombay International Film Festival (India) * Annecy International Animation Festival (France) * Holland Animation Festival * Sinking Creek Film Festival (USA) * Ottawa International Animation Festival (Canada) * U.S.A. Film Festival * Womanimation! Film Festival (USA)

References

External links

''Pro and Con''
at the

Internet Movie Database IMDb (an abbreviation of Internet Movie Database) is an online database of information related to films, television series, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and personal biographies, ...

Joanna Priestley
at the

Joan Gratz
at the

1993 films 1993 animated films 1993 short films 1990s American animated films 1990s animated short films American animated short films Films directed by Joanna Priestley 1990s English-language films