Canada’s Top Ten Shorts 2009 — Program 1

Runaway — Award-winning animator Barker, maker of The Cat Came Back and Strange Invaders (both Oscar nominated), wonders would happen if the world were a driverless train thundering recklessly over bumpy tracks. Cordell Barker/9 mins.

Vive la Rose — Vancouver animator Alcock, using stop-motion animation of found maritime objects set to a song by Émile Benoit, recounts a tragic tale of love in his native Newfoundland. Bruce Alcock/6 mins.

La vie commence (Life Begins) — The bond between two brothers is tested after their father’s gun is stolen in this precise, affecting drama confidently directed by Montreal filmmaker Proulx-Cloutier. Émile Proulx-Cloutier/14 mins.

The Cave — Tsilhqot’in director Haig-Brown’s sci-fi fantasy, based on a traditional Tsilhqot’in tale, is set in 1961 in B.C.’s Chilcotin, where a hunter discovers a secret portal to the spirit world. Helen Haig-Brown/11 mins.

The Armoire — UBC grad Travis’s poignant short displays beautiful art direction as it relates the eerie tale of a young boy tormented by the mysterious disappearance of his best friend. Jamie Travis/22 mins.