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A holocaust survivor recalls hiding a pigsty for days, thankful for the cover provided by the animals in the short film “Letter to a Pig”. A bored classroom of school children listens, giggles, yawns, squeals, as the man talks about writing a letter to a pig that saved his life. But one young listener is profoundly affected by the tale, slipping into a nightmare, where she interprets the fear, anger, and hopes of a generation far removed from the horrors of war, yet reeling under the legacy of collective generational trauma.
Written and directed by Tal Kantor, the film is dominated by a stark black-and-white palette, with the animation team (Meton Joffily, Anne Kraehn, Kantor) employing a blend of different art styles to produce a surreal story about what it means to be human. While some parts seem to have been rotoscoped (a technique where animators draw over real people/objects), other parts are a mix of drawings, photographs and digital animation techniques.
On the surface, the theme of “Letter to a Pig” might seem like a straightforward exploration of the generation gap and the lack of understanding between those who endured the horrors of war and those who grew up far removed from its effects. But given the abstract storytelling and the nightmarish second half, different viewers can walk away with different meanings.
There’s a scene where the students surround a giant pig, which is feral in nature, and kill it. After its death, the pig transforms into a babe, and one student takes it in their arms, nurtures it, and sets it free. The climactic scenes symbolize how survivors of trauma can either let their pain or hatred consume them, leading to an unending cycle of violence, or break the chain and start afresh. Overall, “Letter to a Pig” is riveting film, with a fresh animation style and a haunting soundtrack which complements its profound themes.
You can watch the short on YouTube. It’s also embedded below.
