Winning entry “La Noria” from 2018 now online

Awarded the Jury’s Prize in 2018, the full-length film “La Noria” by Carlos Baena is now available.

The story focuses on a ferris wheel-loving child who is torn up over the loss of his father. Gathering photos and other mementos together into a sort of shrine, the child’s heart-ache seems to birth the darkness that soon threatens him.

One can’t question the exquisiteness of this action—a spooky old mansion, replete with string lights and stained glass windows, provides a splendid backdrop for scrambling chases and doors frantically being shut in the face of grasping monsters. More so than even the design quality, it is in these sequences that the experience and skill of director Carlos Baena seems to show.

Baena has over 20 years of experience in animation with tenures at Industrial Light & Magic, and Pixar on his resume, and credits that include work on massive franchises such Star Wars, Toy Story, and Jurassic Park. Produced under the banner of his own production company, NightWheel Pictures, Baena took advantage of his status as co-founder of Artella, an animation platform that allows for virtual collaboration, in the creation of the film. Baena used the platform to source a diverse crew of independent artists to work on La Noria, with over 100 contributors ultimately joining the project, hailing from all over the world.

Written & Directed by Carlos Baena
Produced by Sasha Korellis & Carlos Baena
VFX Supervisor: Yasin Hasanian
Music by Johan Söderqvist
Sound Design by Oriol Tarragó