The Cabinet of Jan Svankmajer

• Directors: Keith Griffiths; Stephen Quay; Timothy Quay
• Genre: Avant-garde / Experimental
• Release Year: 1984
• Country: UK
• Run Time: 14 minutes

Plot

With The Cabinet of Jan Svankmajer, Stephen and Timothy Quay pay tribute to the Czech animator Svankmajer (their mentor) through a series of brief symbolic episodes featuring a literally bookish professor -- the pages of the book emerge from his open skull -- and a young child. In a dream-like room featuring multitudinous drawers, the professor teaches a series of lessons, including several which suggest learning stop-motion animation itself. Both pieces feature the Quays' trademark obsessively detailed, carefully orchestrated visuals in the service of mysterious, unsettling, dream-like narratives. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide

Review

The Cabinet of Jan Svankmajer is a good introduction to the Quays, as it does have a simple story: boy discovers genius, learns, and goes out into the world to put his lessons into practice. The design of the genius puppet is marvelously like something that Svankmajer himself might have created. Since the boy puppet is patently a Quay creation, it is not too far a stretch to read this film as being about the Quays' personal experience with and reaction to Svankmajer's work. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide

Credit

Keith Griffiths - Director, Stephen Quay - Director, Timothy Quay - Director, Zdenek Liska - Composer (Music Score), Keith Griffiths - Producer, Larry Sider - Sound Editor, Colin Martin - Sound Recordist, Lys Flowerday - Production Assistant