''The Meatrix'' is a short

flash Flash, flashes, or FLASH may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional aliases * Flash (DC Comics character), several DC Comics superheroes with super speed: ** Flash (Barry Allen) ** Flash (Jay Garrick) ** Wally West, the first Kid F ...

animation critical of

factory farming Intensive animal farming or industrial livestock production, also known by its opponents as factory farming and macro-farms, is a type of intensive agriculture, specifically an approach to animal husbandry designed to maximize production, whil ...

and industrial agricultural practices. It has been translated into more than 30 languages and watched by more than 30 million people. A parody of ''

The Matrix ''The Matrix'' is a 1999 science fiction film, science fiction action film written and directed by the Wachowskis. It is the first installment in The Matrix (franchise), ''The Matrix'' film series, starring Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Car ...

'' series by

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, it was made by the

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messaging firm Free Range Studios in 2003 as a commissioned project for Grace Communications Foundation. Two sequels were released in 2006, ''The Meatrix II: Revolting'', and ''The Meatrix II ½''.

Plot

In a dark satire of the 1999 film ''

'',

Leo Leo or Léo may refer to: Acronyms * Law enforcement officer * Law enforcement organisation * ''Louisville Eccentric Observer'', a free weekly newspaper in Louisville, Kentucky * Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity Arts an ...

, a pig on a seemingly

bucolic A pastoral lifestyle is that of shepherds herding livestock around open areas of land according to seasons and the changing availability of water and pasture. It lends its name to a genre of literature, art, and music (pastorale) that depict ...

family farm A family farm is generally understood to be a farm owned and/or operated by a family; it is sometimes considered to be an Estate (land), estate passed down by inheritance. Although a recurring conceptual model, conceptual and archetype, archet ...

, is approached by Moopheus, an anthropomorphic bull. Moopheus shows Leo that the farm he has known is an illusion, and that he is really trapped in a horrific

factory farm Intensive animal farming or industrial livestock production, also known by its opponents as factory farming and macro-farms, is a type of intensive agriculture, specifically an approach to animal husbandry designed to maximize production, while ...

. Leo and Moopheus then work to break out of the Meatrix and help others do the same, with some help from a third character, Chickity. The animated short aims to encourage consumers to purchase organic food products and

free-range Free range denotes a method of farming husbandry where the animals, for at least part of the day, can roam freely outdoors, rather than being confined in an enclosure for 24 hours each day. On many farms, the outdoors ranging area is fence ...

meats.

Awards

''The Meatrix'' has won a number of awards, including a 2005 Webby and the Annecy 2004 Netsurfers Award for Short Films. Free Range Studios claims that over 15 million people have viewed ''The Meatrix'', and it has been translated, either dubbed or subtitled, into 40 languages. ''The Meatrix'' and its two sequels were included as bonus material on the DVD for the 2006 film ''

Fast Food Nation ''Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal'' is a 2001 book by Eric Schlosser. First serialized by '' Rolling Stone'' in 1999, the book has drawn comparisons to Upton Sinclair's 1906 muckraking novel '' The Jungle''. The book ...

''.

References

External links

* *
''The Meatrix'', part 1

''The Metrix: Revolting'' (part 2)

''The Meatrix, part 2 1/2''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Meatrix American environmental websites Films about animal rights Environmental films 2003 films Films about pigs Films about cattle Films set in factories Films set on farms 2000s English-language films