Nana korobi, Ya oki won first place in Animation at the Women Over 50 Film Festival as well as first place for an Audience Choice Award.
The film was written, created and produced by Glenna Burmer with assistance from artistic director Gaby Breiter of Deep Sky Studios in Portland, Oregon. The original music featuring woodwinds and strings was composed by Glenna Burmer and recorded by Dynamedion in Germany.
Women Over 50 Film Festival showcases the work of women over 50 on screen or behind the camera. This year’s festival was held September 25 – October 2, 2021, in Brighton, England.
WOFFF was created in 2014 by Nuala O’Sullivan, who has written for the BBC and the theater. In 2014, after writing and producing her own short film, “Microscope,” she saw how underrepresented older women were on both sides of the camera. She launched WOFFF as a positive and practical response to this lack of visibility.
In response to winning the WOFFF awards, Burmer said: “I am thrilled to hear that our film was an audience favorite. It has been an honor and a joy to participate in the festival, and I hope to join again in the future.”
Nana korobi, Ya oki, or Seven Falls, tells the story of a young Japanese girl who overcomes seven trials to save an orphan during a snowstorm. The film’s title is from a Japanese proverb which says: “Seven times you may fall, but get up the eighth.”
Glenna Burmer is a composer and artist who produces live concerts, music and dance programs that feature original music, choreography and video. As president of Burmer Music LLC for the past decade, she has produced six contemporary classical music CDs or music compilations, including three concerts at Benaroya Hall in Seattle and a ballet at the Meydenbauer Center in Bellevue, Wash. Nana korobi, Ya oki is her first animated film.