The Sandman (1991 film)
Encyclopedia
The Sandman is a 1991 stop-motion animation film, animated and directed by Paul Berry
and nominated for an “Oscar” for Best Animated Short Film in 1992. The storyline is inspired by the E.T.A. Hoffmann's version of the European legend of The Sandman.
, half-timbering and mullion
windows) medieval Europe. Inside, a woman sews by the fireplace and a small pale boy, perhaps her son, beats noisily on a toy drum. A cuckoo clock
strikes eight o’clock (the “cuckoo” is a skeletal death figure
) and the woman sets down her sewing, takes the boy’s drum away, gives him a small oil lamp
and, with a pat on the head, dispatches him off to climb a dark and ludicrously lengthy series of staircases to bed. The child’s tremulous ascent is attended by every sort of scary, creaking noise and mysterious, elusive moving shadow.
Once on the upper floor, he dashes for his bedroom, jumps into his bed (which is bathed in hideously lurid moonlight from the large bedroom window) and pulls the bed sheet
s up over his head. Being a boy, however, he cannot help peering out at his darkened room and through the window at the weird crescent moon, which momentarily takes the form of a terrifying beaked and feathered face in profile. He rubs his eyes and it is gone. A rustling under his bed turns out to be a scolding rat.
Meanwhile, at the foot of the stairs, a strange apparition appears through a closed door: A menacing, raptor
-like human figure with huge, hooked nose and chin (echoing the shape of the crescent moon), feathered arms, and knee breeches with stockings—the Sandman. He seems to specialize in creating unnerving and unaccountable sounds in the night and proceeds up the stairs with a curious mincing gait. The boy, who can hear him approach, alternately hides under the covers and cranes his head about to see the impending danger, until he accidentally breaks his lamp and the noise alerts the Sandman to his location. An intruder into the boy's room pulls back the quaking covers, but it turns out to be his solicitous mother, who retrieves the broken lamp, closes his eyes reassuringly and quietly withdraws. No sooner does the door close, however, than the Sandman emerges from the shadows. He commences an exaggerated, almost ritualistic, step, then a leaping dance, around the bed, all the while making small noises to prompt the boy (who resolutely refuses) to open his eyes. He is preparing a handful of sand to toss into the boy's eyes. Finally, the boy relents, opens his eyes, and the Sandman peppers his face with sand. But in silhouette, we can see that the Sandman has also taken something and, his objective apparently attained, he abruptly flies out the open window and into the night sky. On the moon, the Sandman lands on what we now realize is his nest (seen in the opening shot) which contains three of his tiny, hideous progeny. He opens a small, black pouch, and produces (we see this almost simultaneously with shots of the boy's empty-socketed face) -- two eyeballs. The chicks feast greedily. (After the end titles, the little blind boy is seen walking helplessly and then is seen amid a large number of similarly victimized children.)
.
The influence of the film is also clear in Tim Burton
’s animated film The Nightmare Before Christmas
(1993) on which Paul Berry
also worked prior to his untimely death in 2001.
Paul Berry (animator)
Paul Thomas Berry was a stop-motion animator and director of the 1991 "Oscar" nominated short horror stop-motion animation film The Sandman. In 1992 the film was awarded the Craft Prize for Best Animation at Ottawa International Animation Festival...
and nominated for an “Oscar” for Best Animated Short Film in 1992. The storyline is inspired by the E.T.A. Hoffmann's version of the European legend of The Sandman.
Plot summary
An opening tracking view of a mountainous lunar landscape and the title card (“The Sandman”), both accompanied by menacing musical cues, dissolve into a weird crescent moon and an establishing exterior view of a nighttime household which could be (based upon details like a round towerRound tower
Round tower may refer to:Types of tower:* Irish round tower, a type of early mediaeval stone tower* Broch, a type of Iron Age drystone structure found in Scotland* Round-tower church, a type of church found mainly in England...
, half-timbering and mullion
Mullion
A mullion is a vertical structural element which divides adjacent window units. The primary purpose of the mullion is as a structural support to an arch or lintel above the window opening. Its secondary purpose may be as a rigid support to the glazing of the window...
windows) medieval Europe. Inside, a woman sews by the fireplace and a small pale boy, perhaps her son, beats noisily on a toy drum. A cuckoo clock
Cuckoo clock
A cuckoo clock is a clock, typically pendulum-regulated, that strikes the hours with a sound like a common cuckoo's call and typically has a mechanical cuckoo that emerges with each note...
strikes eight o’clock (the “cuckoo” is a skeletal death figure
Memento mori
Memento mori is a Latin phrase translated as "Remember your mortality", "Remember you must die" or "Remember you will die". It names a genre of artistic work which varies widely, but which all share the same purpose: to remind people of their own mortality...
) and the woman sets down her sewing, takes the boy’s drum away, gives him a small oil lamp
Oil lamp
An oil lamp is an object used to produce light continuously for a period of time using an oil-based fuel source. The use of oil lamps began thousands of years ago and is continued to this day....
and, with a pat on the head, dispatches him off to climb a dark and ludicrously lengthy series of staircases to bed. The child’s tremulous ascent is attended by every sort of scary, creaking noise and mysterious, elusive moving shadow.
Once on the upper floor, he dashes for his bedroom, jumps into his bed (which is bathed in hideously lurid moonlight from the large bedroom window) and pulls the bed sheet
Bed sheet
A bed sheet is a piece of cloth used to cover a mattress. It is this sheet that one typically lies on.In many areas of the world, a second flat bed sheet is laid on top of the sheet covering the mattress. This is known as a "top sheet" and when a top sheet is used, the sheet covering the mattress...
s up over his head. Being a boy, however, he cannot help peering out at his darkened room and through the window at the weird crescent moon, which momentarily takes the form of a terrifying beaked and feathered face in profile. He rubs his eyes and it is gone. A rustling under his bed turns out to be a scolding rat.
Meanwhile, at the foot of the stairs, a strange apparition appears through a closed door: A menacing, raptor
Bird of prey
Birds of prey are birds that hunt for food primarily on the wing, using their keen senses, especially vision. They are defined as birds that primarily hunt vertebrates, including other birds. Their talons and beaks tend to be relatively large, powerful and adapted for tearing and/or piercing flesh....
-like human figure with huge, hooked nose and chin (echoing the shape of the crescent moon), feathered arms, and knee breeches with stockings—the Sandman. He seems to specialize in creating unnerving and unaccountable sounds in the night and proceeds up the stairs with a curious mincing gait. The boy, who can hear him approach, alternately hides under the covers and cranes his head about to see the impending danger, until he accidentally breaks his lamp and the noise alerts the Sandman to his location. An intruder into the boy's room pulls back the quaking covers, but it turns out to be his solicitous mother, who retrieves the broken lamp, closes his eyes reassuringly and quietly withdraws. No sooner does the door close, however, than the Sandman emerges from the shadows. He commences an exaggerated, almost ritualistic, step, then a leaping dance, around the bed, all the while making small noises to prompt the boy (who resolutely refuses) to open his eyes. He is preparing a handful of sand to toss into the boy's eyes. Finally, the boy relents, opens his eyes, and the Sandman peppers his face with sand. But in silhouette, we can see that the Sandman has also taken something and, his objective apparently attained, he abruptly flies out the open window and into the night sky. On the moon, the Sandman lands on what we now realize is his nest (seen in the opening shot) which contains three of his tiny, hideous progeny. He opens a small, black pouch, and produces (we see this almost simultaneously with shots of the boy's empty-socketed face) -- two eyeballs. The chicks feast greedily. (After the end titles, the little blind boy is seen walking helplessly and then is seen amid a large number of similarly victimized children.)
Style and influence
The art direction of The Sandman owes an obvious debt to German ExpressionismGerman Expressionism
German Expressionism refers to a number of related creative movements beginning in Germany before the First World War that reached a peak in Berlin, during the 1920s...
.
The influence of the film is also clear in Tim Burton
Tim Burton
Timothy William "Tim" Burton is an American film director, film producer, writer and artist. He is famous for dark, quirky-themed movies such as Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Ed Wood, Sleepy Hollow, Corpse Bride and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet...
’s animated film The Nightmare Before Christmas
The Nightmare Before Christmas
The Nightmare Before Christmas, often promoted as Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas, is a 1993 stop motion musical fantasy film directed by Henry Selick and produced/co-written by Tim Burton. It tells the story of Jack Skellington, a being from "Halloween Town" who opens a portal to...
(1993) on which Paul Berry
Paul Berry (animator)
Paul Thomas Berry was a stop-motion animator and director of the 1991 "Oscar" nominated short horror stop-motion animation film The Sandman. In 1992 the film was awarded the Craft Prize for Best Animation at Ottawa International Animation Festival...
also worked prior to his untimely death in 2001.
- In 2000, the Brothers QuayBrothers QuayStephen and Timothy Quay are American identical twin brothers better known as the Brothers Quay or Quay Brothers. They are influential stop-motion animators...
made a film, also called The Sandman, which follows a similar plot.