Tiger Kin — MUSHKA

By William J. Hammon, ActuallyPaid.com

It isn’t often these days that traditional, hand-drawn 2D animation makes a lot of waves, given that 3D CGI has been the industry standard for at least the last decade if not longer. But every once in a while, a bit of the classical style comes along to warm your heart, trigger the nostalgia, and remind us all just how rich the art form was, and still is.

An excellent case in point is Mushka, directed by Andreas Deja, who previously served a major role in the last two Disney features that utilized 2D cel shading (2009’s The Princess and the Frog and 2011’s Winnie-the-Pooh). This short, however, hearkens back even further into the House of Mouse’s vast history, evoking the likes of The Rescuers, One Hundred and One Dalmatians, and even Bambi through its rich storytelling and fantastic design.

Set in the Soviet Union during the 1970s, this simple tale of friendship and sacrifice centers on Sarah (voiced by Helena Aviv Perez), a young girl living in Kyiv. When her grandmother and primary guardian (Kelly Hoover) suffers an injury, Sarah is sent to live with her father (Tanner Beard) out in a small mining commune in the wilderness.

Initially distant, the two bond when Sarah wanders off into the forest, where she encounters a tiger cub. Taking it in, Sarah names it “Mushka” after the furry “M” shape on its forehead (common in cats, especially tabbies), as the name translates to “patch” or “beauty mark” from Russian. The three grow together, along with a neighbor boy named Alex (Josh Allen Goldman) who has a crush on Sarah, but danger soon emerges as some greedy miners (all voiced by Ariel Goldberg) want to kill the tiger and sell its fur.

The plot is very straightforward, but that’s part of what makes it so endearing. A family unit filled with grief, uncertainty, and insecurity finds a way to come together in a very uneasy time, learning to lean on one another to help themselves find a little happiness, and when the moment of truth comes, it’s a testament to the purity of love and companionship.

This is expertly aided by the quality of the animation. Done in a rough, colorized pencil sketch style, the character designs and backgrounds are reminiscent of Disney in the 60s and 70s, with one key addition. Pretty much all of the characters, especially Sarah, have some of their modeling shown underneath the ink and paint, giving them a lovely half-formed look. It plays like an excellent visual metaphor that everyone involved is a work in progress, unfinished and unpolished, but still full of beauty and potential, which fits the protagonists to a T (or is it an M?).

At its core, this is just a cute little story about a girl and her pet, but Deja is able to wring out so much more genuine pathos thanks to his deft artistic touch and tender treatment of the leads. Because of that, this becomes an ideal way for kids and families to spend a half hour, with just the right amount of heartstring tugging to supplement the technical achievement.

Mushka is currently making its way around the festival circuit where its already garnered some awards. For more information, visit the film’s website, and look for our upcoming episode featuring an interview with the director Andreas Deja.

Originally published at https://behindtherabbitproductions.wordpress.com on June 29, 2023.