History of the World in Three Minutes Flat

1980 Canadian film

1980 (1980)

Running time

3 minutesCountryCanadaLanguageEnglish

History of the World in Three Minutes Flat is a 1980 Canadian animated short film,^[3] directed by Michael Mills.

Summary

The film depicts a history of life on Earth, beginning with God (who had been given seven days to create the world but wasted the first six) hurriedly putting together the planet. Scenes rapidly progress from Biblical times to the Romans, Egyptians, the Dark Ages, the World Wars and finally up to the current day, where a group of people are seen arguing. When God yawns, however, the people begin to dance the curry their creator's favour. But God is unimpressed, saying, "Oh, well. Better try again."^[4] (Despite the title, the film is actually three minutes and 24 seconds long.)

Production

The short was animated by Bill Speers, John Gaug, Jim Hiltz, and Rick Bowan.^[5]

Accolades

This hugely successful film won a multitude of international awards.^[6] The film received a Genie Award nomination for Best Theatrical Short Film at the 2nd Genie Awards in 1981,^[7] and an Academy Award nomination for Best Animated Short Film^[8] at the 53rd Academy Awards.^[9] It won the award for Best Film Under Three Minutes at the 1980 Ottawa International Animation Festival,^[10] the Short Film Golden Bear at the 1981 Berlin Film Festival,^[4] a Golden Reel Award from the Canada Council's inaugural Canadian Short Films Showcase,^[11] and the American Film and Video Festival's Blue Ribbon Award.^[6]

References

^ Short Film Winners: 1981 Oscars
^ "1981 Oscars". Retrieved April 17, 2015.
^ 16TH INTERNATIONAL TOURNEE OF ANIMATION - Cleveland Film Festival
^ ^a ^b "Canadian film wins Berlin award". The Globe and Mail, February 26, 1981.
^ Mazurkewich 1999, p. 143.
^ ^a ^b Lenburg, Jeff (2006). "Mills, Michael". Who's who in Animated Cartoons: An International Guide to Film & Television's Award-winning and Legendary Animators. Hal Leonard Corporation. p. 242. ISBN 978-1-55783-671-7.
^ Jay Scott, "Genie nominations released". The Globe and Mail, February 10, 1981.
^ "Cartoons Considered For An Academy Award – 1980 -". cartoonresearch.com.
^ "Oscar nomination for Radio-Canada". The Globe and Mail, March 7, 1981.
^ "Animation festival announces awards". The Globe and Mail, August 29, 1980.
^ "Nine short films win awards". The Globe and Mail, March 3, 1982.