9 Movies Directed by Norman McLaren

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An experimental film of dots animated by being drawn directly on filmstock.

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An experimental film, consisting of abstract shapes and colors shifting to the rhythm and variations in the music. This short was made by painting directly onto a film strip.

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This film, shot in pixilation (a kind of stop-motion animation with actors), is about two neighbours who come to barbaric blows over a flower that straddles the property line.

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An animated film drawn entirely in pastels. Various fantastical plant-like things "grow" from the ground, eventually launching five spheres. The spheres drift in space while changing shapes and come back down to another setting, which eventually becomes more fantastical and symbolic than the opening one. The soundtrack has a jazz slant, with an ensemble of four saxophones and synthetic sound (i.e. sound created by drawing directly on the soundtrack).

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The surreal story of a bird and its cage with both their conflict and union.

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A young man wishes to sit down on a plain white chair in order to read. The chair resists this whole idea strenuously. Finally the young man admits defeat and sits on the floor. But left on its own the chair becomes lonesome... The music is provided by Ravi Shankar, years before the Beatles spread his name far and wide.

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Perhaps the only film whose content is totally based on the musical form known as canon. The first sequence is a simple demonstration of the canon "Frere Jacques" where four cubes dance and combine with one another on a checkerboard. The second sequence show four little human-like figures dancing in space. The third and most elaborate sequence shows a human going through several strange gesticulations. Through multiple printing we realize that the man, as in the previous sequences, is part of a visual canon and is making the gestures to himself. As we hear variations on the canonic theme so too do we witness visual variations: a woman and cat enters the canon. To show the musical technique of inversion, the image of the man is printed upside down.

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Two ballet dancers perform a dance enhanced with surreal multi and after-image effect visuals.