Listen, the pandemic has been awful. Like, really awful. So we look for the silver linings where we can. And one of the best developments to come out of the last year, at least pop culturally speaking? Online film festivals.

Film festivals used to be relegated to the relatively privileged few who 1) could afford access, 2) either lived in or could afford to travel to the city where the festival was being held, and 3) could afford to take time off work to watch a whole bunch of films. That’s, like, a privilege hat trick.

But with film festivals moving online, you can watch at your own pace from the comfort of your own home. Yes, you still need to pay to watch, but the overall price is significantly lower than it was in the past.

I, for one, hope online film festivals stick around much longer then COVID-19.

The New York International Children’s Film Festival is heading into its second and final weekend, in case you were looking for something to watch. (Use discount code ROARBOTS2021 to get $3 off single tickets and $5 off All Access passes.)

We’ve already told you that both Nahuel and the Magic Book and Calamity are well worth the price of admission. But let’s take a look at two other animated films in the lineup.

The Bears’ Famous Invasion

Directed by Eisner Award-winning artist (for 2003’s Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde) Lorenzo Mattotti, The Bears’ Famous Invasion is a French film based on an Italian children’s book by Dino Buzzati. It was originally screened at Cannes in 2019 and has been making the film festival rounds ever since.

The film depicts the cycle of conflict and peace – of friendship and betrayal – between the bears and humans of Sicily. Narrated by a pair of traveling (human) storytellers, the story of King Léonce comes to life in vibrant colors and bold character designs. But the storytellers have an ulterior motive – to entertain. Namely, they’re trying to entertain (and distract) a bear who is sharing the same cave with them. Halfway through the film, the perspective changes as the bear becomes narrator and tells the “true” story.

The Bears’ Famous Invasion is a gorgeous work of art. Its lush animation and divine musical score (by René Aubry) will captivate and delight. In an age when so much animation is defined by quick-cut editing, mature themes, or dumbed-down fart jokes, it’s fantastic to see films such as this excel in all possible ways.

Director Mattotti was also the illustrator of the hauntingly lovely Hansel & Gretel, published by TOON Books and written by Neil Gaiman, which we reviewed ages ago right here.

The Legend of Hei

I had been interested in this one since seeing a few scenes at last year’s Annecy Festival. From director MTJJ (aka Zhang Ping), the film is based on his Flash animation (and webtoon) that ran in China from 2011 through 2019.

The film is essentially an ecological parable with fantastic/supernatural elements. It follows cat spirit Luo Xiaohei, whose home is deforested by humans. He runs into a group of other spirit creatures who take him under their wing with dreams of reconquering the land they say is rightfully theirs. However, after he meets the human Wuxian, Luo Xiaohei learns to control his abilities… and gets involved in a much larger battle.

I really wish I could recommend this one, because it looks gorgeous. When this was first released, a lot of online chatter was calling it the “Chinese Ghibli.” This makes sense since the film goes out of its way to emulate Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli’s style. From the lush watercolor backgrounds to the soundtrack that flat out copies Joe Hisaishi’s score for Spirited Away, it’s clear The Legend of Hei was supposed to draw Ghibli comparisons.

Sadly, it’s a convoluted mess. The story doesn’t make much sense, characters are introduced without introduction, many are without motivation, and Luo Xiaohei’s cat form only exists for marketing purposes (it’s adorable but totally at odds, designwise, with the rest of the film).

To be fair, I was also forced to watch the English dub (the NYICFF portal doesn’t have the original Chinese as an option), which may have also added to my disappointment. The acting was… adequate, but it bears all the stereotypical hallmarks of dubbed anime. Which I don’t enjoy.

Notably, the film is scheduled to come out in May on Blu-ray from Shout! Factory with both the English dub and the original Mandarin audio. If you’re going to give the film a shot, I’d recommend watching in the original language.