Consequence

(Konsequenz)

GDR, 1986, 2 min, color
Credits:
Director
Animator
Script
Dramaturg
Editor
Camera
Music (Score)
Themes & Genres:

Synopsis

An ice cream vendor sports a gas mask as he tries to sell to a swarm of cars. The cars continue on their way, smoking with exhaust. A driver coughs, then his neighbor, then the animals in the forest, the trees, and finally the Earth itself begins to cough. The film-within-a-film ends, and the viewers rush back outside – into their cars.

 

This short film is available for purchase or streaming as part of the collection Animation Before Unification: 16 Shorts from East Germany.

Commentary

Consequence is a short film with an unflinching environmental message. The far-reaching damage caused by air pollution is communicated with muted colors, scenes of nature, and a pervasive cough.

Director Klaus Georgi ironically comments on human apathy to environmental harm with this ending, and at the same time calls the true audience to task: if we are apathetic, the planet will face the consequences.

Availability

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