The March issue of Japanese animation and video magazine, CG World, has a very nice two-page article and interview with Chris Harding on Learn Self Defense. We don’t know any Japanese, but we’re hoping it says something positive.
Here’s the google translation of the article summary:

-Paradigm shifter
Crith* Harding
It was seen mainly even at the electronic theter of the SIGGRAPH of last year, depends on the artist of various fields, the unique animation work. This time, the electronic theater prize-winning work ‘Learn Self Defense’ the new world of the animation which evolved from interview of the writer and crith* Harding is searched.

Learn Self Defense is touring with Spike & Mike’s new Sick & Twisted Festival of Animation. The show will be playing for the next several months, mostly around the West coast.

Check the Spike & Mike site for current tour dates

The festival got a pretty decent review from the Vancouver Weekly, Straight:

Exerpt:
In general, everyone here is up for quite a bit of pain and violence, with only one short having a real (sharpened) point. Chris Harding’s “Learn Self Defense” would be a handsomely drawn spoof of cowardly machismo even if you didn’t (eventually) recognize that the George doing all the defending here is the president of the you-know-what.

- Ken Eisner, Straight.com
Spike & Mike’s Sick & Twisted Festival of Animation 2005
10-Nov-2005

In the past few weeks, Learn Self Defense has taken home a few more awards at film festivals.

At the Bradford Animation Festival, put on by the British National Museum of Photography, Film, and Television, we won two awards:

The Audience Award for Best Film, as voted by the festival attendees, and Best Professional Film. (”Professional??!!”)

The Toofy Film Festival in Boulder, CO is a small but very cool festival in its second year. In addition to screening films, they also have music and fashion.

Learn Self Defense won the Golden Toof Award for Best Animated Short. Thanks, Toofy!

Learn Self Defense has so far screened in over 70 festivals in over 15 countries. But who the hell goes to film festivals? Here is an update on how normal, decent people can have a chance to see the short:

DVD
As of this writing, Learn Self Defense is included in 3 separate DVD collections:
- Best of SIGGRAPH 2005 Animation Festival DVD
- Pictoplasma Characters In Motion Collection DVD
- The upcoming SHORTS! Volume 4 DVD, which will be released in 2007(?) and will include two commentary tracks from Chris Harding and his mom.

Television
For those of you who live in Spain or Switzerland and you keep your eyes open, you’ll be able to catch Learn Self Defense on your very own TV set next year. As for the rest of the countries on Earth, you’ll just have to be patient… probably VERY patient. Maybe someday it will air in the US, but probably not…

Theatrical
It also looks like Learn Self Defense will play in the next Spike & Mike Sick and Twisted Festival of Animation tour. Check the Spike and Mike Web site, because they add dates constantly.

They’ll also likely put out some kind of DVD. (but Chris Harding doesn’t share any revenue action from that, so buy the SHORTS! Volume IV collection mentioned above instead– it has a commentary track!)

Two of Chris Harding’s shorts– Learn Self Defense and Make Mine Shoebox– will be included in the new Pictoplasma Collection of Contemporary Character Animation entitled “Characters In Motion.” It’s a beautiful package filled with very inspiring work from directors all over the world.

Learn Self Defense will also screen in the Pictoplasma Animation Festival November 25-26, 2005 in Berlin.

The DVD/book will be available worldwide very soon. Check the Pictoplasma Web site for updates.

Chris Harding’s very first short, He’s a Good Monkey, played on G4TV this week on the Happy Tree Friends and Friends program.

We will try to keep on top of things enough to announce it ahead of time if it plays again! Ha, heh… huuhhh…

The G4TV staff also conducted an interview with Chris Harding. Read it HERE.

Learn Self Defense is right in the thick of the festival tour, and has already screened in 35 cities with many more scheduled for the rest of the year.

The film has also taken home several awards in recent weeks:

Oxford Film Festival
Spirit of the Hoka Award for Best Animation

Irish Animation Festival, Féile Beochan
Special Mention, International Category

1st Sundays Comedy Film Festival
Judges’ Choice Award

Tallgrass Film Festival
Audience Award for Best Short

Arizona International Film Festival
Selected for Best of AIFF Show

Check the homepage for a complete list of upcoming screenings.

Busustow Media Group is working on a documentary about the mid-century work of the influencial studio, UPA. 

They had a huge impact on many animators, whether they realize it it or not. Obviously, Make Mine Shoebox and Learn Self Defense owe a lot to them. Hopefully some old UPA gems will resurface and be made available to the public once again as a result of this project.

Chris Harding will be interviewed for the documentary, although who knows if that material will make the final cut? Check out their website for more information and updates on the progress of the film.

fps is a very thoughtful and well designed magazine. This was true even before the editors and staff decided to feature Learn Self Defense on the cover of the September issue. It's even more true now.

Exerpt:
…Dressing contemporary political commentary in satire, Harding brilliantly sets the story of George deciding that he must learn to protect himself after being brutally attacked in an alley… …the intent of this film is not dissimilar to John Hubley’s in his 1946 Brotherhood of Man. Thankfully, Chris Harding will not find himself at the behest of McCarthy’s Committee on Un-American Affairs as did Hubley for making art…

- Janeann Dill, fps magazine #4
September 2005

READ THE FULL ARTICLE HERE 

 

This year at our home town festival, the Kansas City Filmmakers Jubilee, Learn Self Defense won two awards– First Place in KC/Metro Animation category, and the coveted Robert Altman Best of the Fest Award! There were a lot of good films screening in all the categories, so this was a very pleasant surprise.

The speech Chris Harding was too dumbfounded to deliver:
Thanks to all the people who run the Jubilee, and to the Jurors for coming out and supporting our movies. And mostly thanks to Amy who has lived with a person hunched over a screen in the basement for many moons.