Trailer For Cordell Barker's Animated Short RUNAWAY

If we did even a half-assed job of promoting our own talent here in Canada then Winnipeg based animator Cordell Barker would be the local equivalent to Bill Plympton or maybe even Nick Park. The man has been nominated for an Oscar twice - for The Cat Came Back and Strange Invaders - and that alone should be enough to guarantee his status, but alas. We don't do a half-ass job. On a good day we have a quarter of an ass or so and more often than not it's closer to an eighth. So nobody has much of a clue and the fact that Barker's most recent short - Runaway - has been selected to screen as part of Critics Week in Cannes has scarcely been noticed by the Canadian media, never mind the average Joe or Jacques on the street. Here's the skinny:

Happy passengers are having a great time on a crowded train, oblivious to the unknown fate that awaits them around the bend. The ensuing crisis leads to a class struggle that is as amusing as it is merciless. Naturally there are victims, but in the end everyone is equal.

This one looks like vintage Barker stuff, very kinetic and a whole lot of fun. You'll find the trailer below the break!