Summary
More tells the story of an inventor who lives in a drab, colorless world. Day by day, he toils away in a harsh, dehumanizing job, his only savior being the memories of the bliss of childhood. But at night, he works secretly on an invention that could help him relive those memories and spread their joy to everyone in his despair-filled life.
When he finishes his invention, it changes the way people look at the world. But his success changes him, for with it, he loses an important part of himself.
Production & Publication
More was written and directed by Mark Osborne, and created by a team that included, among others, Keith and Shannon Lowry, Rick Orner, Nick Peterson, and David Candelaria. Although it was only a 6-minute short, it was, as Osborne put it, an “absolutely massive undertaking”—as it was the first short to be shot using the IMAX format.
Filming More took nine months, and it was first screened in fall of 1998. While it had a positive critical reception—including an Academy Award nomination—it soon became apparent that there was little that could actually be done with it in the range of publicity. The hype died down eventually, and Osborne was left with a highly acclaimed six-minute piece of art in his hands.
Osborne decided to upload More to iFilm but had fears about his work being exploited and redistributed, or audience acceptance given the small size of a computer display. Almost immediately after putting it up on iFilm, More was voted the most popular clip on the site, and it held that position for nearly a year.
More has gained reputation for being one of the greatest short movies ever created, and was for a long time ranked as the best short movie at IMDb’s top short list, where it was ranked 8th as of July 2009.
Soundtrack
The song featured as background music is titled “Elegia”. It was recorded by the band New Order on the 1985 album Low-Life.
Awards
More was awarded the following honors:
- Sundance Film Festival – Special Jury Prize for Short Films
- South by SouthWest – Best Animated Short
- Academy Award (1999) – Nominee – Best Animated Short
- ResFest – Audience Award for Best Film, Grand Audience Prize for Best Film
- Aspen Shorts Fest – Special Jury prize
- World Fest Houston – Gold / Special Jury Prize for Shorts
- USA Film Festival – Dallas – Grand Jury Prize for Shorts
- Toronto International Short Film Fest – Best Animated Short, Best Short Overall
- Stony Brook Film Fest – Best Short Film
- Message to Man International Film Festival – Russia – Best International Debut Film
- PhilaFilm – Philadelphia – Best Animated Short
- Annie Awards – Nominee for Best Animated Short Subject
- St. Louis International Film Festival – Best Short Film
- Uppsala International Short Film Festival/Sweden – Audience Award for Best Film
- San Francisco Indie Fest – Audience Award
For more information about More and Mark Osborne, including the official DVD release with two commentaries and an hour-long documentary on the creation of More, visit:
http://site.happyproduct.com/blog/
