Stop-motion spectacle
With Wes Anderson’s “Isle of Dogs” premiering at the Berlinale Film Festival and “Early Man” hitting American theater’s last week, hype around stop-motion films has picked up — at least with cinephiles. Contributing to that excitement this weekend will be the next act in Conn College’s onStage Guest Artist Series — the stop-motion animated feature film “Torrey Pines.”
The film, created and directed by Clyde Petersen (a Seattle-based artist, working in film, animation, music, installation and “fabulous spectacle”), premiered in October 2016 and is currently touring the world. Though we’re sure that this one was made with a sizably smaller budget than that of an Anderson or Tim Burton film, we think “Torrey Pines” should be a charming experience nonetheless — especially considering that the film’s musical score will be performed live by Petersen and his punk-rock band Your Heart Breaks.
The film, which is autobiographical and based on a Petersen’s life, tells a coming-of-age story set in the late 1990s. With a mother fueled by hallucinations of political conspiracy and a generally dysfunctional family, a 12-year-old Petersen is taken on a cross-country adventure that will forever alter the family.
“Torrey Pines,” 7:30 p.m., Friday, Evans Hall, Connecticut College, Mohegan Avenue, New London; $18, $16 seniors, $9 students; (860) 439-2787.