Michelle and Uri Kranot

Michelle and Uri Kranot are husband-and-wife filmmakers and animators. Their best known work to date is The Hangman at Home, winner of the 2020 Grand Jury Prize for Best Immersive Work at Venice Biennale and the 2021 Best XR work at Cannes Film Festival.

Michelle Kranot
Born
Michal Pfeffer

Israel
Occupation(s)Filmmaker, animator, producer
Years active2001-present
Notable workThe Hangman at Home
Uri Kranot
Born
Israel
Occupation(s)Filmmaker, animator, composer
Years active2001-present
Notable workThe Hangman at Home

Early lives and career

Michelle and Uri Kranot were born in Israel, and both graduated with honors from the Bezalel Academy of Art and Design in Jerusalem. Uri's 2001 student film, Avinu Malkenu, was an official selection at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival.[1] Both Michelle and Uri then attended the postgraduate filmmaking program at the Netherlands Institute for Animation Film in 2005, where their first project together, God on Our Side, won several awards, including Best Animation at Tampere Film Festival.[2]

In collaboration with the Viborg-based animation school, The Animation Workshop, the Kranots founded and co-lead the ANIDOX project.[3] ANIDOX:LAB is a workshop and incubator for animated documentary films and non-fiction narrative works, and was notably the early development program for Jonas Poher Rasmussen's Oscar-nominated film Flee.[4][5][6]

While the Kranots continue to produce traditionally-animated films, they have become known for experimental techniques that merge traditional animated filmmaking with virtual reality and other immersive technologies. In 2013, their Hollow Land was shortlisted for the Best Animated Short Film at the Academy Awards,[7][8] and won widespread recognition, including wins at the Athens International Film Festival, Brooklyn Film Festival, and the Encounters Short Film and Animation Festival.[9][10] The Kranots also created the companion piece, The Hollow Land Experience, a participatory and immersive theatrical experience based on visuals and themes in the animated film.[11]

In 2016, the Kranots made How Long, Not Long in collaboration with Erik Gandini, and with the support of ANIDOX.[12][13]

Their subsequent film and VR experience, 2017's Nothing Happens, won numerous awards as a film including at Annecy International Animation Film Festival,[14] and was also exhibited as a VR experience in multiple competitions,[15][16] including at the Venice Biennale.[17]

The Kranots' 2021 The Hangman at Home was a multi-format project, released as a short film, single-user, and multi-user VR experience. The film is inspired by Carl Sandburg's 1922 poem of the same name, and narrated by Michelle Kranot. The film was honored with awards at several animated film festivals, including a Best Original Score award from the London International Film Festival for Uri's score. The film's single-user VR experience, and the multi-user version called "We Are At Home,"[3] won the Grand Jury Prize for Best VR Immersive Work at the 2020 Venice International Film Festival, and the 2021 Grand Prize Masque d'Or at the Paris New Images Festival, among others.

The couple have also announced an animated feature film in development based on the Tom Gauld graphic novel, Goliath & Me.[3][18]

Personal life

Michelle and Uri Kranot are married, have four kids, and currently live in Viborg, Denmark.[19][3]

Filmography
  • 2005 - God on Our Side
  • 2008 - The Heart of Amos Klein
  • 2010 - White Tape
  • 2013 - Hollow Land
  • 2014 - Black Tape
  • 2016 - How Long, Not Long
  • 2017 - Nothing Happens
  • 2018 - Songbird
  • 2019 - Suggestion of Least Resistance
  • 2021 - The Hangman at Home

References
  1. "Annecy > About > Archives > 2002 > Official Selection > Film Index". www.annecyfestival.com. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
  2. "GOD ON OUR SIDE by Michal Pfeffer & Uri Kranot @ Brooklyn Film Festival". Brooklyn Film Festival. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
  3. Croll, Ben (9 June 2021). "'We Are at Home' Filmmakers Michelle and Uri Kranot Redevelop Project, Prep Feature Debut (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 6 March 2023.
  4. "FLEE". ANIDOX. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
  5. "Animation im Dokumentarfilm". creative-europe-desk.de (in German). Retrieved 3 March 2023.
  6. Lally, Kevin (30 November 2021). "Escape from Afghanistan: Jonas Poher Rasmussen Animates a Refugee's Harrowing Journey in Acclaimed Doc Flee". Boxoffice. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
  7. Perlman, Jake (7 November 2013). "Oscars announce Best Animated Short Film shortlist". EW.com. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
  8. "10 Animated Shorts Advance in 2013 Oscar® Race | Oscars.org | Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences". www.oscars.org. 7 November 2013. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
  9. "HOLLOW LAND by Uri Kranot & Michelle Kranot". Brooklyn Film Festival. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
  10. "19th Encounters Short Film and Animation Festival Award Winners". Skwigly Animation Magazine. 22 September 2013. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
  11. Sarto, Dan (17 December 2013). "Michelle and Uri Kranot Talk 'Hollow Land'". Animation World Network. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
  12. "ANIDOX:LAB '22 Call for Applications". Skwigly Animation Magazine. 28 February 2022. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
  13. "2016 Award Winners, film index". www.annecyfestival.com. Retrieved 9 March 2023.
  14. "Danish Film 'Nothing Happens' Wins Fest Anča 2018 - FilmNewEurope.com". www.filmneweurope.com. 2 July 2018. Retrieved 6 March 2023.
  15. "We Are at Home, a Multi-User Interactive VR Premieres at Tribeca". frenchculture.org. Retrieved 6 March 2023.
  16. Milligan, Mercedes (28 August 2017). "Viborg Animation Fest Celebrates Japan-Denmark Connection". Animation Magazine. Retrieved 6 March 2023.
  17. "Deep Inside an Artwork". www.dfi.dk. 26 August 2017. Retrieved 6 March 2023.
  18. Croll, Ben (9 June 2021). "'We Are at Home' Filmmakers Michelle and Uri Kranot Redevelop Project, Prep Feature Debut (EXCLUSIVE)". www.yahoo.com. Retrieved 6 March 2023.
  19. "Uri Kranot - Documentary Campus". Documentary Campus. Retrieved 6 March 2023.
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