This is a curated show with selections of the best animated short films created by students and professionals from around the world. That translates into 10 films from seven countries.

Its funny how animation has so rapidly grown from Saturday morning fodder to an art form that is arguably the most imaginative and thought-provoking in filmmaking today.

Here are some brief descriptions of the featured films, courtesy of event organizers:

Personal relationships are at the heart of several of the films in this years program, including Daria Kashcheevas International Student Academy Award-winning puppet animation Daughter, a deeply moving exploration of the ties between a father and daughter.

The Fox and the Bird by Sam & Fred Guillaume, is a beautifully observed fable about an unlikely friendship between the two eponymous characters.

Filmmaker Michael Frei and game designer Mario von Rickenbach provide a more clinical view of human behavior in their mesmerizing KIDS,which explores the nature of group dynamics.

The question of individual identity informs both Hounds by Amit Cohen and Ido Shapira and (Self-Narrative) by Graldine Charpentier. In the former, a highly domesticated dog undergoes a disturbing change when a pack of wild hounds gathers near his house, while the latter offers a clear-eyed and heartfelt look at a young girls journey to self-realization as a transgender person.

Joanna Luries mysterious and transcendent Flowing Through Wonder chronicles an extraordinary ritual and celebrates the transformative mystery that underlies life and death.

Natalia MirzoyansFive Minutes to Sea in which a young girl waits impatiently to go back in the sea, takes a more lighthearted approach while playing with conundrums of time and perspective.

The program is rounded out by Gil Alkabetzs Rubicon, a frenetic and very funny hand-drawn animation based on the classic riddle about how to ferry a wolf, a sheep, and a cabbage across a river without something getting eaten.

The 21st Annual Animation Show of Shows runs Friday, Feb. 21 to Sunday, Feb. 23, at the Art Theatre, located at 2025 E. Fourth St. Showtimes are 1 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and 3 p.m. on Sunday. For more information or to buy tickets, click here.

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Link:
See the best animated short films from around the world at the Art Theatre, Sunday the Hi-lo - Long Beach Post