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Bilby is a 2018 CGI animated short film written and directed by Pierre Perifel, JP Sans, and Liron Topaz. It is the second short released from the DreamWorks Shorts program, following Bird Karma. The short evolved from ideas for the studio's cancelled feature film Larrikins.

Plot[]

In the Australian Outback, a timid Bilby named Perry searches for food while surviving the harsh environment and evading the deadly predators that also inhabit it. One day, he encounters an albatross chick turned on her head. Feeling pity, Perry turns the chick over, which causes her to imprint on him. Perry wants nothing to do with the chick, and repeatedly tries to leave her in different locations, but ultimately abandons his mission to find food to save her from various animals.

Finally, Perry and the chick stop at the top of a steep cliffside which experiences frequent gusts of rising wind. Perry sees that the chick is ready to fly on her own, and decides to leave her here, only to watch her get snatched by an eagle. Fearful for his new friend's life, Perry musters his courage and attacks the bird of prey. Ultimately, the eagle drops the chick, and Perry free-falls through the air to catch her. He tosses her safely onto the cliff's edge, and is blown back onto it by an updraft. The two friends embrace, and the short ends in a flash-forward to the fully grown albatross landing on the cliffside, where she and Perry now live with plenty of food.

Cast[]

Production[]

Bilby features characters conceived for DreamWorks Animation's Larrikins, a planned film that was cancelled in March 2017[1]. The short's directors previously worked on Larrikins' production: Perifel was head of character animation, Sans was a character supervisor, and Topaz was a lead animator[2]. Bilby proved to be a testing ground for new animation software, such as Moonray, a light rendering engine used in DreamWorks' feature films beginning with How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World.[2][3]

Release[]

Bilby had it's world premiere on June 16, 2018 as part of the closing ceremonies for the 2018 Annency International Animated Film Festival. DreamWorks Animation's official YouTube channel uploaded the short on December 21, 2018. Bilby and Bird Karma were both included on home video releases of How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World on May 21, 2019.[4]

Reception[]

Bilby won the Jury's Choice Award at the 45th SIGGRAPH conference, as well as the Audience Award at the Palm Springs International Festival of Short Films.[3][5]

Gallery[]

Wiki
DreamWorks Wiki has a collection of images and media related to Bilby.

Videos[]

References[]

  1. Amidi, Amid (March 7, 2017). DreamWorks Kills Tim Minchin's 'Larrikins'. Cartoon Brew. Retrieved on August 21, 2019.
  2. 2.0 2.1 Failes, Ian (August 13, 2018). EXCLUSIVE: DreamWorks Directors On How They Made 'Bilby,' And On The Studio's New Shorts Program. Cartoon Brew. Retrieved on August 21, 2019.
  3. 3.0 3.1 Wolfe, Jennifer (December 10, 2018). VIDEO: DreamWorks Animation Short 'Bilby' A Testing Ground for New Production Tools. Animation World Network. Retrieved on August 21, 2019.
  4. How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World 4K Blu-ray. Blu-ray.com (March 26, 2019). Retrieved on August 21, 2019.
  5. Giardina, Carolyn. "SIGGRAPH: Animated Short 'Hybrids' Wins Best in Show", The Hollywood Reporter, Lynne Segall, July 11, 2018. Retrieved on August 21, 2019. 

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