13 minutes 45 seconds

Adults

Disenchanted with the women around him, a man creates a perfect female idol and falls in love with her. Yet, since the created idol cannot return the outpouring of his affection, the man’s obsession only leads him deeper into isolation and despair. In a special ritual, the man asks an ancient love goddess to turn his made-up woman into reality.

“Idol” provides a contemporary twist to the classic tale of Pygmalion. Set in a modern-looking world made of corrugated cardboard, the film tells its story through puppets manipulated live before the camera. The characters are simple two-dimensional figures reminiscent of graphic novel characters or vintage paper dolls. Through its deliberately ‘ugly' recycled materials and aesthetic concept, the film challenges our obsessive consumption of images and objects by exposing its shadow side: objectification, media addiction, social withdrawal, and hikikomori syndrome. Simultaneously, it digs deeper into an archetypal pattern layer, questioning what is real and not and what it is to worship, desire, and love...

Profile Artist

Fallada Puppetworks is a puppetry and object theatre group established by Kris Fleerackers. Each performance has its own unique concept and look, for which he builds or gathers the needed object. Such an approach enables him to combine his interest in traditional techniques with his love of experiments and mechanical techniques. Kris believes that puppetry allows people to reconnect with the wonder of simple technology to bring stories to life from way back when.