Storied animator and filmmaker Nassos Vakalis probably never realized he’d be making such an impactful film when he set out to create “Dinner for few.” But over a decade later, as well as more then 10 million views of his short on YouTube, Vakalis has a time-tested classic on his long roster of success.
And if views mean nothing in this age of streaming, then certainly accolades amongst peers should resonate.
Dinner for few, the thought-provoking and chilling horror short animation ranks as one of the most awarded short films, with dozens upon dozens of official selections and awards from film festivals throughout the world.
Vakalis, a Greek-born, U.S.-educated animator boasts illustrious employers like Warner Brothers and Dreamworks and an Emmy Awards for his work. But “Dinner for Few” might very well be his legacy project for years to come.
The inspiration behind this film was the economic crisis in his homeland Greece.
In 2011, one of his friends encouraged him to make a cartoon. But he felt with some more development, “the idea had legs to be a short animated film.”
His two and half years of hard work paid off when it made it into the list of “60 Animated Shorts” of 2015 Academy Awards.
But wait, there’s a twist.
The film doesn’t end where it should have.
Vakalis explained at the time to an interviewer:
“Sadly, the offspring of this profound transition turn out not to be a sign of hope, but the spitting image of the parents. A new group of pigs, like the ones before, have now taken seats on a new table, eating a new wealth, while the remaining are left again to look for scraps. This recycling of power of “the same people,” whether they are the ones who eat well or the ones at the bottom of the food chain, is what connects the film to the Greek crisis. This unbalance is what leads to the crisis.”
