What happens in Vegas doesn’t always stay in Vegas!
That’s the case with Glenna Burmer’s short animated film, Nana korobi, Ya oki, which became one of the most talked-about films at the Vegas Movie Awards in January.
Calling the film “a beautiful project,” Vegas Movie Award organizers recognized Nana korobi with an Award of Excellence for Best Animation. This is the top award in that creative category.
Burmer also won two Awards of Merit — Best Experimental Film and Best Visual Effects. The film was one of five semi-finalists selected as the “Best of the Month” from Vegas Movie Awards for January 2023.
Nana korobi, Ya oki, or 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.”
The film was created by music producer and filmmaker 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.
Burmer’s animated film has won more than 50 festival awards worldwide since it was completed in spring 2021. Among top honors were awards won at several prominent Pacific Northwest festivals, such as the Seattle Film Festival and the Oregon Short Film Festival, as well as recognition from festivals worldwide from India to Istanbul, Spain to Singapore.