Big Mouth

Directed by Andrea Dorfman

Canada, 2012 (animation / children's, 8 minutes, colour, English / French)

Also known as "Bouche décousue"

Image: © National Film Board of Canada

Video (National Film Board of Canada)
Video (National Film Board of Canada) [French]

Film Description:
"Filmmaker Andrea Dorfman has a way with words. In Big Mouth, she explores the experiences of a bright-minded, quick-witted child, questioning what it means to speak the truth, and coming to understand how our differences make us unique. Dorfman's whimsical storytelling is all heart. Hand-drawn puppets dance, skip and cartwheel across the screen as one little girl discovers the complexity of words and that what we say may not be what we mean. Trudy, equal parts truthful and rude, has an unfiltered and deeply curious way of looking at the world. She honestly points out what she sees—be it a big mole or a big belly! The result is an impressive accumulation of disciplinary notes from her teacher. Like Trudy, eventually we all learn how to read, make friends and develop a healthy relationship with the truth. A film for anyone, young or old, who has gotten in trouble for saying too much, Big Mouth is an animated short about one of life's big lessons."
-- National Film Board of Canada (source)

Film Credits (partial):
Written by:	Andrea Dorfman
Produced by:	Annette Clarke, Kent Martin, Ravida Din
Animation:	Andrea Dorfman
Music:	Mike O'Neill
Production Company:	National Film Board of Canada / Office national du film du Canada

(sources)

Quotes about Big Mouth

"The film [Big Mouth] is creatively animated using marionette-like cut-paper images. Bonus clips tell how the film was made, including the inspiration and process. Narrated in both English and French, this whimsical little tale would be a delightful addition to foreign language, art, film, and language arts classes, and could be used as a discussion starter about tolerance and compassion."
-- Lisa Hubler (source)

"Young children don't understand that pointing out physical flaws can be hurtful. Tact is a learned skill, and that's the message behind Halifax animator Andrea Dorfman's short animation Big Mouth. [...] Her eight-minute video, which uses hand-drawn paper cut-outs imposed on hand-drawn water-coloured backgrounds, will hold children's attention. The cut-out characters, line-drawn with rounded faces and exaggerated long, narrow arms, move jerkily, just like cut-out paper puppets. Her approach creates a sense of whimsy and innocence and makes the story/poem an easy lesson."
-- Harriet Zaidman (source)

Bibliography for Big Mouth

Articles from Newspapers, Magazines, or News Websites

Hubler, Lisa. "Big Mouth." Review of Big Mouth. School Library Journal, vol. 59, no. 8, August 2013.
Williams-Wood, J. "Big Mouth." Review of Big Mouth. Video Librarian, vol. 28, no. 5, September-October 2013.
Zaidman, Harriet. "Big Mouth." Review of Big Mouth. Canadian Review of Materials, vol. 20, no. 7, October 18, 2013.

Web Sites about Big Mouth

National Film Board of Canada. "NFB -- Big Mouth." National Film Board of Canada. http://onf-nfb.gc.ca/en/our-collection/?idfilm=59180.
Office national du film du Canada. "ONF -- Bouche décousue." Office national du film du Canada. http://onf-nfb.gc.ca/fr/notre-collection/?idfilm=59231. [in French]