City duo earns Oscar nomination for animated film Animal Behaviour
STEPHANIE IP
Vancouver’s Alison Snowden and David Fine and their animated short Animal Behaviour have been nominated for an Academy Award.
It marks the husband-andwife team’s fourth Oscar nomination.
“We are so touched and honoured that Animal Behaviour has been recognized this way by Academy voters,” said the pair in a statement announcing the nomination.
“We are grateful for the fantastic support the film has had from everyone who worked on it in Vancouver, Montreal and at the NFB (National Film Board of Canada).
“It’s wonderful to come back to making a short film with the NFB after so long and have this recognition. Humbling, to say the least.”
The film shows a number of animals settling in for a group-therapy session and asks whether it’s better to learn and adapt or if we should just accept our true natures.
It was produced and distributed by the NFB.
While Snowden and Fine were completing the film in 2017, Snowden developed a stubborn virus that resulted in an autoimmune disease called acute respiratory pneumonitis. The short has been dedicated to the medical professionals at Vancouver General Hospital who helped save Snowden’s life.
To celebrate, the short will be streamed for free for two weeks leading up to the award ceremony, from Feb. 11-24. It will be available for streaming at NFB.ca, Facebook, Vimeo and YouTube. The Oscars are Feb. 24 in Los Angeles.