PR: LOTTE THAT SILHOUETTE GIRL Named Best Short Film at AmDocs (Carla Patullo)

This past weekend LOTTE THAT SILHOUETTE GIRL was named Best Short Film at the 2018 American Documentary Festival (AmDocs) in Palm Spring, CA. With music, light and shadow, co-writer/co-director/composer Carla Patullo alongside co-writer/co-director Elizabeth Beecherl tell the history of female animation pioneer, Lotte Reiniger, and her unique methods of storytelling.

“AmDocs is an incredibly imaginative festival”, explains Carla, “To find out that we were awarded Best Short Film by the jury is a true honor.” Her co-filmmaker, Elizabeth, adds, “I imagine Lotte sitting there in the audience with us, as she liked to do during her film screenings, and smiling!”

The short documentary tells the nearly forgotten story of animation innovator Lotte Reiniger, who created the first feature length animation and invented the multiplane camera. "No one else has taken a specific animation technique and made it so utterly her own.... To date she has no rivals, and for all practical purposes the history of silhouette animation begins and ends with Reiniger." - Philip Kemp, BFI

LOTTE THAT SILHOUETTE GIRL will have its Canadian premiere at Hot Docs on May 1st.

Carla Patullo

Carla is both filmmaker and composer for Lotte. Known for musical ambition, sonic soundscapes, and stirring emotional content, her scores have received numerous awards including a Global Music Award, a Platinum Remi, and a Hollywood Music in Media Award nomination. Carla is also a songstress who records and performs live as White Widow.

Elizabeth Beercherl

Elizabeth was born in Lubbock, Texas and studied architecture at the University of Virginia. She has worked as an architect for several years on projects that have been published in The New York Times, Dwell, and many other design publications. She started animating and making films after watching Lotte Reiniger’s 1922 movie Cinderella and falling in love with the medium of silhouette animation.

Co-directors Elizabeth Beecherl and Carla Patullo make films in Los Angeles under the name Trick Studio.

LOTTE THAT SILHOUETTE GIRL (2018, 10 mins.)

Directed by Elizabeth Beecherl and Carla Patullo. Produced by Trick Studio. Written by Elizabeth Beecherl, Carla Patullo, and Jennifer Maisel. Narrated by Lotte Reiniger. Music by Carla Patullo. Animation by Elizabeth Beecherl. Animation Artists: Meejin Hong, Sarah Winters, Matt Yarrington Nancy Putnam. Puppet Design by Helen Short. Costuming by Allison Dillard. With Erica Hanrahan-Ball (Juliet) and Andrew Diego (Romeo). USA. English. A Trick Studio release.