Rob Munday
If you’re one of those people who believes animation is just for kids, we’ve got hundreds of films that would prove this theory wrong on Short of the Week. Today’s pick Algo en el Jardín (Something in the Garden), by Chilean filmmaker Marcos Sánchez, is the perfect example. A dark and twisted six-minute short about a monstrous creature devouring people (and cats) in a neighbourhood, you won’t see a creepier film on S/W all year.
Something in the Garden introduces it viewers to its sinister scenario as we witness a cat emerge from the darkness of a black frame. As the wind gently blows leaves and flowers around the scene, the friendly feline begins to prowl its domain, unaware that it will soon meet its untimely end, thanks to the titular ‘something in the garden’. As the creature continues to wreak havoc, a blue-haired neighbour finds himself compelled to investigate.
“Formally, I have always been interested I atmosphere in film, specially within horror movies” – Sánchez on the importance of mood in his film.
A short more interested in atmosphere than building a strong narrative arc (the director describes it as a “film that is felt rather than understood”), Something in the Garden employs dark visuals and a minimal soundtrack to embed a sense of fear throughout. The way Sánchez uses empty space is especially impressive, the blackness of the night feeling almost like a character itself. Or “a space for wonder and illusion to creep in” as he describes it. While the sound design amplifies the stillness you often only find when everyone else around you is sleeping.
Sánchez is happy to admit his film doesn’t really carry a strong message, revealing that he didn’t have a “practical motive” for making it. “I draw an image or think of an idea that intrigues me and I have a desire to see what it is about”, he states. Adding that his work usually takes shape as he explores what surrounds this image or idea, he describes the process as “if the idea did not depend on me but had a reality of its own that I had to unveil by expanding it.”
“I am interested in the night as a moment of introspection and a space for wonder and illusion to creep in” – Sánchez revealing the importance of darkness in his short.
From this point, the short developed very organically, with Sánchez writing and drawing in tandem, some of the scenes animated before the storyline was even finalised. Again, the use of darkness was key in the film’s distinct look and tone. “The method of composing the scenes relied on keeping the space really dark, allowing shadows to become strong elements in the story”, the director explains. “That defined a lot of the film, which has to do with exploring and attempting to step into the invisible or unknown.”
Something in the Garden is a visually impressive piece, the design work reminding me of seminal cartoonist Charles Burns. Yet it’s the combination of aesthetic and atmosphere that really make this piece such a success. Watching so many shorts every year, you don’t often watch one and wish it was longer, but that’s exactly how I felt with Sánchez’s film. If you enjoyed it as much as me, you’ll be happy to hear that the filmmaker is working on a sequel to Something in the Garden, while also developing another animated short and series.