Flow

As an open source software bore it’s a thrill seeing a film made with Blender, a brilliant 3D modelling program, win an Oscar. Better still, it was rendered without a massive server farm, instead using some of the built-in features of the software to give the film a magical and ethereal quality. What a fantastic way to work with what you’ve got.

The real talent is still human though, and Zilbalodis’ ability to study animal behaviour and gently bend it to tell a compelling story of survival, friendship and adversity is remarkable.

And yet, and I’m very much loathed to admit it, I found myself mostly pretty bored and unable to connect with the film. Objectively I see it’s a fantastic piece of work, but emotionally I found myself not that invested in the outcome of the story. I worry that might mean I’m a bad person.

The whole cinema full of people completely loved it, and it was almost a full house, so it’s still something I would recommend seeking out.