North. A journey of WH von Dönersmarck

The count WH von Dönersmarck, sent in embassy to the North, left Port-Bismuth and spent several months in the frozen wilderness, before eventually reaching his goal. He is about to enter the station KN-810, his final destination, when something prevents him from doing so. He then starts thinking about what could be that hinders him from getting the relief he needs after all those months of hardship endured in the wild.

  • Frédéric Roussel
    Director
  • Frédéric Roussel
    Writer
  • Frédéric Roussel
    Set & puppet
  • Federico Mompou's "Música callada"
    Recorded music
  • lasonotheque.org
    Sound FX
  • Project Title (Original Language):
    Nord. Un voyage de WH von Dönersmarck
  • Project Type:
    Animation, Experimental, Short
  • Runtime:
    4 minutes 48 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    January 3, 2018
  • Country of Filming:
    Belgium
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    .mov
  • Aspect Ratio:
    1.78:1(16:9)
  • Film Color:
    Black & White and Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Monza Film Fest
    Monza
    Italy
    September 24, 2021
    Honorable Mention
  • Zero Degree Film Contest
    Mohali
    India
    October 20, 2020
    Best Experimental Short
  • Cyrus International Monthly Festival
    Toronto, Ontario
    Canada
    October 1, 2020
    Semi-Finalist Best Experimental Short
  • Blu-Hill Film Festival
    Online event
    September 25, 2020
    Best Short Film - ART/Experiment
  • Redwood Shorts & Scripts
    Sunnyvale, California
    United States
    August 23, 2020
    Official Selection
  • Depth of Field International Film Festival
    Nassau, Delaware
    United States
    July 31, 2020
    Award of Merit
  • Moody Crab Film Fest
    Moga
    India
    July 17, 2020
    Official Selection
  • Directors Circle Festival of Shorts
    Erie, Pennsylvania
    United States
    December 7, 2019
    Finalist Best Animation Film
  • Cutting Edge International Film Festival
    Pompano Beach, Florida
    United States
    November 10, 2019
    Official Selection
  • Cuzco Underground Cinema Festival
    Cuzco
    Peru
    October 3, 2019
    Official Selection
  • Cinex Independent Film Festival
    Online event
    Official Selection September 2019
  • Santiago Independent Film Awards
    Santiago
    Chile
    Official Selection August 2019
  • Dumbo Film Festival
    New York, NY
    United States
    Official Selection May 2019
  • Five Continents International Film Festival
    Puerto La Cruz
    Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of
    February 3, 2019
    Official Selection
  • Largo Film Awards
    Online event
    Switzerland
    Finalist Best Animation Film December 2018
  • Chhatrapati Shivaji International Film Festival
    Pune
    India
    December 31, 2018
    Official Selection
Director Biography - Frédéric Roussel

Born in Brussels, Belgium, where I live, I practice and teach Drawing. My main concern is telling, be it by ways of words alone, words and drawings, words and photos, no matter if I cross the boundaries between art fields. Feeling concerned by the intricacies image is rich of, I like to explore the ties linking pictures to words and sound. I am also fond of nature, and my stories mirror it to some extent. I love challenges, such as making films on a shoestring, in the back of a garage...

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

This film was at first made of stills purposed to be printed on paper and read. Later on, feeling unsatisfied with the result, I thought it could become a short movie, which I did through the medium of the slide show. I also intended to add sound effects, like ambient sounds and such... but... no... Mompou's piano music fitted perfectly well enough. In this work I tried to make animation and writing merge into something else. I wish it works. But, at any rate, in the process this work gained, thanks to the film medium, a depth and echoing the paper version didn’t have at all. The words resound another way, a way the film alone is able, I believe, to provide.