The animated short film, Nana korobi, Ya oki , with original music and story by Glenna Burmer, received an award for Best Animation at the New York Movie Awards in May. Her film, selected by an international jury of producers, directors and actors, was judged against entries from around the world.
Watch a video trailer here.
Additional awards received in late summer and fall include two Best Animation awards from film festivals in Turkey (Golden Wheat Awards) and Malta (Your Way International Film Festival), and an award for Best Women Directors from the First Women Film Festival in Tabriz, Iran, which is dedicated to women’s rights.
Burmer was also tapped to participate on the jury for the Portland Film Festival, which ran October 11-23, 2022. This popular Northwest festival celebrated its tenth anniversary this year.
Nana korobi, Ya oki was created by Glenna Burmer and produced and animated by Deep Sky, led by art director Gaby Breiter. The original music featuring woodwinds and strings was composed by Glenna Burmer. Not only is it a female-led film in the areas of production, musical score and on-screen animation, it was also inspired by Burmer’s mother who was a sumi-e artist.
The film has won more than 50 awards at festivals worldwide since it was completed in spring 2021. Among top honors are awards won at several prominent Pacific Northwest festivals, including the Seattle Film Festival and the Oregon Short Film Festival.
The title, Nana korobi, Ya oki ,which means “seven falls,” tells the inspirational story of a young girl who undergoes seven challenges to save a dear friend from the cold. The film’s title is from a Japanese proverb which says: “Seven times you may fall, but get up the eighth.”