Ana Chubinidze’s animation ’The Pocket Man’ to debut at US fest

Georgian filmmaker Ana Chubinidze’s animated film The Pocket Man will premiere among some of the latest worldwide productions for young audiences at the New York International Children’s Film Festival later this month.

The successful completion of the film’s production was marked by Chubinidze and her team with the release of its teaser last month.

The seven-minute animation will debut to more than 25,000 visitors and participants of the New York festival, which is scheduled to screen 100 new films from over 30 countries from February 24-March 19.

See the teaser for the animation film ‘The Pocket Man’ below:

The animation follows a small man living in an old suitcase, who strikes up a friendship with an elder, blind man after their chance encounter in a big city.

The characters of the short film were drawn by hand on paper before the figures were digitised and animated. The production process involved teams in France and Georgia, with the final project also involving co-production effort from Switzerland.

The film’s producers also plan to release the animation in print form following its screening.

The New York International Children’s Film Festival is one of 100 international festivals that will receive The Pocket Man as a submission throughout the year.

The festival program features cinema productions made in over 15 languages, arranged in sections involving feature, documentary, short and animation works.

Organisers of the event will offer its audience an opportunity to determine the winning submissions, while filmmakers will be able to take advantage of the festival’s "hands-on filmmaking workshops”.

Established in 1997, the festival was recognised as an Oscar qualifying cinema event in 2011, granting its winners eligibility to be considered for the Best Live Action and Best Animated Short Film at the Academy Awards.