Review: Variety (2009)

Directed by: Roelof van den Bergh | 5 minutes | animation, short film

The short animation film “Variété” is a report of a performance by an artist in a theater-like environment. A little boy enters, two adults by his side. The child turns out to be a juggler with Chinese plates and he throws the man and the woman up, spinning the stick. Soon a second person comes in the form of a young girl, who also has to balance on the plate. The boy gets even busier when a teacher comes on stage with a few heavy books. And that is not the only challenge the boy faces. With his idea for “Variété”, animator / director Roelof van den Bergh has found a brilliant metaphor for life. Every person has to perform some kind of circus act in his life; and as you get older, the demands placed on you become higher and sometimes even unreasonable. You have to keep your parents and your loved one happy, have friends to go out with, work, colleagues. Sometimes you run from one to the other, but it is still too late. Partly due to the great music of Aram Khachaturian, “Variety Theater” has become a very striking video that you will be able to watch repeatedly. Even if only to escape the hectic pace of your own existence for a few minutes.