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Love Letter to Vienna
by Kris Hofmann
Vienna is a stunning animated short film that you call a “love letter to what you believe to be the most beautiful city in Europe.” What motivated you to do this project? Any particular meaning behind the timeline of its release?
I don’t think I started appreciating the place properly until I moved away and only to come back to visit a couple of times a year. Distance tends to give you a more objective outlook.
So, what makes Vienna beautiful in your eyes?
Lots of old and naturally grown cities are something of a ‘Gesamtkunstwerk’. The architecture is stunning and the structure of the city with all its narrow interwoven streets and pathways is utterly charming. Its most beautiful characteristic in my point of view though is the pace of the city - it’s just really mellow.
There are so many lovely places to sit down and drink coffee, read the paper, have a glass of wine and a nice conversation and just take in your surroundings...and people seem to relish that.
From a professional point of view the laid back vibe can be frustrating, but its what really makes the city as a place to visit I think.
From an artistic perspective, why did you decide to take the viewer for a romantic stroll in the alleyways, cobblestone streets, with a few glimpses of the magnificent architecture, but completely avoiding people and sort of substituting them by stylish, colorful hats?
I’m an animator and work with metaphors most of the time, so its something that comes naturally to me. It felt like a good way to depict a romantic stroll and give the city center stage.
Has it crossed your mind to confess your love for London too, your adopted home for more than a decade?
I wouldn’t live here if I wouldn’t consider London a great city, so I reckon that’s enough of a sign of devotion, particularly when you take into consideration how difficult London is…you got to be constantly on your toes.
London feels a little like the partner you have and love, but sometimes you wonder whether he really appreciates you.
I don’t think I started appreciating the place properly until I moved away and only to come back to visit a couple of times a year. Distance tends to give you a more objective outlook.
So, what makes Vienna beautiful in your eyes?
Lots of old and naturally grown cities are something of a ‘Gesamtkunstwerk’. The architecture is stunning and the structure of the city with all its narrow interwoven streets and pathways is utterly charming. Its most beautiful characteristic in my point of view though is the pace of the city - it’s just really mellow.
There are so many lovely places to sit down and drink coffee, read the paper, have a glass of wine and a nice conversation and just take in your surroundings...and people seem to relish that.
From a professional point of view the laid back vibe can be frustrating, but its what really makes the city as a place to visit I think.
From an artistic perspective, why did you decide to take the viewer for a romantic stroll in the alleyways, cobblestone streets, with a few glimpses of the magnificent architecture, but completely avoiding people and sort of substituting them by stylish, colorful hats?
I’m an animator and work with metaphors most of the time, so its something that comes naturally to me. It felt like a good way to depict a romantic stroll and give the city center stage.
Has it crossed your mind to confess your love for London too, your adopted home for more than a decade?
I wouldn’t live here if I wouldn’t consider London a great city, so I reckon that’s enough of a sign of devotion, particularly when you take into consideration how difficult London is…you got to be constantly on your toes.
London feels a little like the partner you have and love, but sometimes you wonder whether he really appreciates you.
VIENNA from Kris Hofmann on Vimeo.
Your short film, 'Breakfast', ends with “The Food We Eat Has a Story to Tell.” It is a very sensible work presenting a serious message in a very digestible manner. Were you taken by surprise by the attention this particular short film received?
Although 'Breakfast' was my first animation, it’s still my favorite. The message feels just as relevant now as it did 7 years ago. 'Breakfast' did really well on the short film festival circuit … less so online, which was a bit of a surprise. I thought it be the other way around, to be honest.
Even after seven years of making animations, I keep wondering why some projects prove to be very popular and others less so.
Are you working on other animation projects focusing on other messages that you see as important to share with the world?
I believe the way we treat animals – the wild ones whose habitat we are solely diminishing due to economic ‘needs’ and the ones we rear for food consumption – is one of the biggest crimes of humanity.
There is a part of me that feels I should only make films about those issues, but I have learnt that people have only so much space in their heads for concern and worries. I don’t think it wouldn’t do any good to turn out a dozen animations on the subject.
So no, at the moment I don’t do any of that.
'Screwed Up' is such a quirky take on a love story and a story of not knowing a good thing until it’s gone. The set up, colors, movement, music are all in sync. Was there a real life story that fed you the elements of everything presented in this project? It’s authentic and fantastic…
Yes there was a real life story, but animation is such a long process that although there was a personal reason for making the film in the first place, it had become something else by the end of it.
My emotions, interests and experiences obviously inspire me, but I try to leave it at that and make sure that whatever I create is relevant to an audience and not just me expressing what I feel or think.
Changing the beat here, you’ve done a lot of work on commission. What makes a commission interesting other than the compensation aspect of it? Do you ever feel restricted when working on a commission?
It may be restrictive, but I don’t think that’s necessarily a bad thing. My background is in communication design, not in filmmaking or fine art. So most of the time I consider a set of parameters set by a client or an agency an interesting creative challenge, not an obstacle.
What other art forms are you interested in that may or may not have an impact on your own aesthetic choices?
I love going to exhibitions, the theatre and to concerts, all of which are in some way inspirational. But I reckon the bigger influence on my works comes from outside of the arts. I read a lot and try my best to follow what’s going on in the world. I’m interested in politics, conservation issues, in science etc. My understanding of all of that is fairly superficial, but I believe it still has an impact on what I do.
www.krishofmann.co.uk
Although 'Breakfast' was my first animation, it’s still my favorite. The message feels just as relevant now as it did 7 years ago. 'Breakfast' did really well on the short film festival circuit … less so online, which was a bit of a surprise. I thought it be the other way around, to be honest.
Even after seven years of making animations, I keep wondering why some projects prove to be very popular and others less so.
Are you working on other animation projects focusing on other messages that you see as important to share with the world?
I believe the way we treat animals – the wild ones whose habitat we are solely diminishing due to economic ‘needs’ and the ones we rear for food consumption – is one of the biggest crimes of humanity.
There is a part of me that feels I should only make films about those issues, but I have learnt that people have only so much space in their heads for concern and worries. I don’t think it wouldn’t do any good to turn out a dozen animations on the subject.
So no, at the moment I don’t do any of that.
'Screwed Up' is such a quirky take on a love story and a story of not knowing a good thing until it’s gone. The set up, colors, movement, music are all in sync. Was there a real life story that fed you the elements of everything presented in this project? It’s authentic and fantastic…
Yes there was a real life story, but animation is such a long process that although there was a personal reason for making the film in the first place, it had become something else by the end of it.
My emotions, interests and experiences obviously inspire me, but I try to leave it at that and make sure that whatever I create is relevant to an audience and not just me expressing what I feel or think.
Changing the beat here, you’ve done a lot of work on commission. What makes a commission interesting other than the compensation aspect of it? Do you ever feel restricted when working on a commission?
It may be restrictive, but I don’t think that’s necessarily a bad thing. My background is in communication design, not in filmmaking or fine art. So most of the time I consider a set of parameters set by a client or an agency an interesting creative challenge, not an obstacle.
What other art forms are you interested in that may or may not have an impact on your own aesthetic choices?
I love going to exhibitions, the theatre and to concerts, all of which are in some way inspirational. But I reckon the bigger influence on my works comes from outside of the arts. I read a lot and try my best to follow what’s going on in the world. I’m interested in politics, conservation issues, in science etc. My understanding of all of that is fairly superficial, but I believe it still has an impact on what I do.
www.krishofmann.co.uk
