Welcome to Schirkoa. Imagine a place where immigration was considered a plague. Where no identity was preferable to any identity. A society of faces made bland and generic by decree. The Bag Act was the new law of the land, enforced by the intellectuals of a dystopian society. That's the story behind 'Schirkoa', the short film written and directed by animator Ishan Shukla. This beautifully animated short tells the story of a dismal metropolis where everyone hides their identities for fear of persecution.
This is a place where a good alias is everything. The main character identifying herself only as 'Little Whore', narrates the tail as she describes her first meeting and the relationship she has with a mysterious bureaucrat known only as '197 A'. One day the bureaucrat decides to end it all by jumping off a building. Before he leaps, he meets the gaze of a woman from another rooftop, preparing to do the same. Our storyteller never sees her mysterious bureaucrat again, but lives on to witness and describe the events that follow. A relationship between the 'White Witch' and 197 A ensues, leading to a twisted plot laced with love, betrayal and chaos.
Most certainly a 'cartoon' for adults, 'Schirkoa' is an intelligent piece of visual art with a strong social message, as well as being completely entertaining. I could see this short film being the prototype for a much longer feature or a series. The film created a frighteningly curious world with a rich storyline and compelling visual effects. It engages and gives cause for reflection on the most frightening aspects of a postmodern society revisited by coercive 'nationalism'.
For a thirteen minute film, the invested craftsmanship in the soundtrack and animation was well worth it and due credit should go to the other animators as well; Yiming Lim, Nico Agatha Wibowo and Milan Padhiyar. The music and sound design were exquisitely composed and scored by Nicolas Titeux and I look forward to seeing more work from Indian filmmaker Ishan Shukla and his fellow animators.
EJ Wickes/Cult Critic/CICFF