Watch: Vibrant Animated Short ‘Horacio’ Created by Caroline Cherrier
by Alex Billington
July 19, 2023
Source: YouTube
“I was thinking, be careful or I’ll send my son!” Whoa. This short is unexpectedly unsettling, with a dark side to it that plays against the bright colors. Horacio is an animated short film from France, running just over 10 mins, made by filmmaker Caroline Cherrier. It premiered at the Annecy Film Festival and first debuted in France in 2020, and is now online to watch thanks to Short of the Week. The film follows a boy who kills another boy, and goes to prison for it. Years ago, Guillaume killed his friend Horacio. During his long prison sentence, Guillaume gradually forgets why he killed him. Then he is released… With the voice of Spider Zed as Guillaume. It’s crazy bold and especially striking to make a film about a murderer and make it look this beautiful. The hand-painted style reminds me of Ghibli’s films, so vibrant. This is worth a watch.
Thanks to Short of the Week for the tip on this debuting online. Very brief intro from YouTube: “Screaming too loud is what got Horacio killed, with his murderer Guillaume now released from prison, what will he do next?” Horcaio is both written and directed by French animation filmmaker Caroline Cherrier based in Lyon – you can see more of her work on her Vimeo page or follow her on IG @caroline.cherrier; she also now works at the animation collective called Souviens Ten-Zan. Cherrier made a very cool animated tribute to the “Prince of Darkness”, dircetor John Carpenter – watch that here. Produced by Edwina Liard and Nidia Santiago of Ikki Films. With music by Marie Cherrier. This debuted on TV in France in late 2020 after first premiering at the Annecy Film Festival. For info visit YouTube or SOTW. To watch more shorts, click here.
