''Salvation Has No Name'' is a 2022

stop motion Stop-motion (also known as stop frame animation) is an animated filmmaking and special effects technique in which objects are physically manipulated in small increments between individually photographed frames so that they will appear to exh ...

animated short, written and directed by Joseph Wallace. Told through a dynamic mixture of color and black with a dramatic narrative and international all-female voice cast, it is a unique animated film which explores themes of

xenophobia Xenophobia (from (), 'strange, foreign, or alien', and (), 'fear') is the fear or dislike of anything that is perceived as being foreign or strange. It is an expression that is based on the perception that a conflict exists between an in-gr ...

and the

refugee crisis A refugee crisis can refer to difficulties and/or dangerous situations in the reception of large groups of refugees. These could be Forced displacement, forcibly displaced persons, internally displaced persons, asylum seekers or any other huge ...

. The film features the voices of

Itziar Ituño Itziar Ituño Martínez (born 18 June 1974) is a Spanish actress, who performs in her native Basque language as well as in Spanish. She is best known for her role as Inspector Raquel Murillo in the television series '' Money Heist''. Early li ...

(

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

Money Heist ''Money Heist'' (, , ) is a Spanish heist crime drama television series created by Álex Pina. The series traces two long-prepared heists led by the Professor ( Álvaro Morte), one on the Royal Mint of Spain, and one on the Bank of Spain, ...

) and

Yasmine Al Massri Yasmine Al Massri (born 1978) is a Palestinian-born US-American and French actress, dancer, video artist and human rights advocate. She made her film debut in the 2007 film ''Caramel''. In 2015, Massri starred as ''Nimah Amin'' and ''Raina Amin'', ...

(

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...

's Quantico). The short is produced by Loran Dunn for Delaval Film and Exec Produced by

Maisie Williams Margaret Constance "Maisie" Williams (born 15 April 1997) is an English actress. Williams made her acting debut in 2011 as Arya Stark, a lead character in the HBO epic medieval fantasy television series ''Game of Thrones'' (2011–2019). She g ...

and Lowri Roberts through their company RAPT and co-produced by Autour de Minuit in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

and Animation People in

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...

. The film is funded by the BFI NETWORK,

France Televisions France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, the CNC and the Czech Film Commission. Filmed at

Aardman Animations Aardman Animations Limited, known simply as Aardman, is a British animation studio based in Bristol, England, United Kingdom. It is known for films and television series made using stop motion and clay animation techniques, particularly those fe ...

studios in

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...

and Media City in

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

, the film features an original score by Kit Wilson, sound design by David Kamp, with casting by Heather Basten. In August 2022, the refugee organisation Choose Love was announced as the official charity partner of Salvation Has No Name with the intention to use the film as a tool to highlight the plight of refugees through their humanitarian work.

Plot

A troupe of clowns gather to perform a story about a Priest and a refugee but as their misguided tale unfolds, the boundaries between fiction and reality begin to fray.

Cast

as Malabarista / Priest *

as Woman * Anna Savva as Pierrot / Gossip * Katrina Kleve as Piccolo Clown / Tailor * Elisabetta Spaggiari as Ringmaster / Bookkeeper * Barbara Sotelsek as Grande Clown / Boucher

Reception

The project was the winner of the 2017 Visegrad Animation Forum pitching competition. The film had its world premiere at the

Edinburgh International Film Festival The Edinburgh International Film Festival (EIFF), established in 1947, is the world's oldest continually running film festival. EIFF presents both UK and international films (all titles are World, international, European or UK Premieres), in al ...

on 13 August 2022 and the North American premiere took place at Rhode Island Film Festival. The film has been since selected at numerous film festivals worldwide including Encounters Short Film Festival, Uppsala International Short Film Festival, Aesthetica Short Film Festival, Cinanima, London International Animation Festival and Rio de Janeiro International Short Film Festival. Salvation Has No Name was nominated for the McLaren Award for Animation at the Edinburgh Film Festival, received the Special Mention for Best Independent Short Award at Stop Motion Montréal in September 2022 and won both the Grand Prix for Best Short Film and the Best Direction award at Animage in November 2022. In January 2023, it was announced the film was long-listed for the British Short Animation

BAFTA The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA, ) is an independent trade association and charity that supports, develops, and promotes the arts of film, television and video games in the United Kingdom. In addition to its annual awa ...

2023.

References

External links

* '
Official Trailer
on

Vimeo Vimeo ( ) is an American Online video platform, video hosting, sharing, and services provider founded in 2004 and headquartered in New York City. Vimeo focuses on the delivery of high-definition video across a range of devices and operates on a ...

'' * {{IMDb title, 11947680 2022 animated short films 2020s English-language films British animated short films English-language short films