Best known as the cult creator of the animated web series Salad Fingers (SUFF 2007) David Firth creates morbidly fascinating worlds that delve deep into the darkest recesses of the human psyche. It’s fair to say that once you lay eyes on his shorts, it’s hard to shake their visceral effect in a hurry. Eleven years after first screening his work at SUFF, Umbilical World represents a curation of Firth’s most popular shorts to date, each bookended by brand new transitional animations. Using surrealist techniques to explore depression and mental illness with some of the darkest humour this side of the twenty-first century (his work has been featured on Charlie Brooker’s Screenwipe and Mitchell & Webb), Firth has become one of the world’s most significant, independent animators. Umbilical World is a brain-melting celebration of Firth’s short but prized career — a dog-stew of animated fancies from the scabland toybox that is his mind.
While Citizen Kane is a masterpiece and I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve watched Interstellar, these are the movies that truly live close to my heart.
A collection of films and shows featuring major plot twists, unique concepts, and stories that challenge your perspective. These titles are highly recommended for anyone looking for something different.