Steps to Fly | New work from OSA Estudio and Vivement Lundi ! to premiere this month
Skwigly
This September 2024, Steps to Fly is spreading its wings with premieres in both Europe and America. Directed by the dynamic duo Nicolás Conte and Rosario Carlino, and beautifully crafted in stop-motion, this short film is a delightful treat for kids and families alike. The film is a joint effort between Argentina’s OSA Estudio and French Oscar nominated company Vivement Lundi !.
Steps To Fly (OSA Estudio/Vivement Lundi !)
Steps to Fly tells the poignant story of two birds confined to a room with a high window. The larger bird teaches the smaller one how to fly, even though he has no wings. The appearance of a mysterious briefcase will ruin Bird’s plans, and will reveal to Little Bird an unexpected possibility of escape.
The film tries to encourage children to think creatively and critically, to be somewhat skeptical of what is given to them and of what tries to mold them. The creators want to suggest that they can discover their own interests and a way of doing things that feels natural to each individual.
Steps to Fly has enjoyed a successful journey through various pitching forums and markets, beginning with its debut at Apa Lab in Córdoba in 2019, where it received two awards. The project continued to gain recognition, winning the Mifa award at Pixelatl Shortway and participating in the Animarkt Stop Motion Forum in Poland. In 2021, it was featured in the MIFA Pitches at the Annecy International Animation Festival, where it secured the Ciclic award.
Despite Argentina’s tricky economic climate—fueled by a government with a knack for making cultural funds disappear—the production wrapped up in May 2024, thanks to the unwavering support from CNC, Procirep, and Angoa in France, the Polo Audiovisual, Córdoba Film Commission, and two universities (Blas Pascal University and UNICEN) where the directors work as professors.
The short film is set to make its international debut this September in America, competing in the international category at the Pixelatl International Animation Festival in Mexico (September 3-7).
Rosario Carlino and Nicolás Conte (Image provided by Vivement Lundi !)
We are deeply honored to premiere Steps to Fly at Pixelatl. The festival has become a cornerstone of the creative industries related to animation in Latin America. Our participation in Shortway was instrumental in the development of this project, opening many doors. Premiering the film at Pixelatl, a festival that supported and nurtured our journey, underscores the importance of platforms that provide visibility and training for creators and their works, while also contributing to the diversification of narratives with ideas rooted in the global south.
-Rosario Carlino, co-director and lead producer of the project
Simultaneously, it will have its European premiere at the Stop Trick Animation Festival in Slovenia, a festival renowned for its dedication to the art of stop-motion.
We are equally thrilled to present our film at the Stop Trick Animation Festival. Slovenia and Eastern Europe have a long-standing tradition of excellence in stop motion, and many of the short films that inspired us hail from this region. We hope this eastern European premiere marks the beginning of a journey that will take our short film to audiences around the world.
-Nicolás Conte, Director
With Steps to Fly, we aimed to contribute to sustainability from an artistic perspective. We worked with natural materials—wood, branches, brick—and repurposed existing objects, minimizing the need for new construction. The set was a real room, eliminating the need for intricate models. For the water effects, we used 130 kilos of recycled plastic, which was later donated to a local small business that creates furniture from recycled plastic. We are pleased to premiere at Stop Trick, a festival that not only celebrates stop motion but also promotes innovative production methods.
-Rosario Carlino, lead producer, director, and founder of OSA Studio
Stop-motion animation is part of Vivement Lundi’s DNA and we are always looking for singular ways to work with this technique. When I discovered the project, I’ve immediately been seduced by its original aesthetic and its strong character design. Nicolas and Rosario created a fantastic and surrealistic movie in which strong topics resonate such as child autonomy or handicap. We are very happy to have been able to support them in this production.
-Jean-François Le Corre, French coproducer and CEO of Vivement Lundi !
For more about Pixeltal 2024 visit pixelatl.com