Lynn Smith

There’s been another toxic spill. For the city councillor responsible, it’s just a big nuisance, having to endure media scrutiny until the crisis has passed. For the creatures in the lake, however, it’s a catastrophe. One turtle, in her desperate hour, summons up the courage to leave her home and speak truth to power. Turns out there’s more at stake than just the lake. Animated directly under the camera by Lynn Smith using paint and collage, What Rhymes with Toxic is both funny and deadly serious, and a sharp reminder that we are all interconnected.

Opening with dreamlike images of the city of Siena at night, this short sand animation evolves into a symphony of waving banners, distant voices and galloping horses. Created especially for Italy’s Siena International Short Film Festival.

A man makes a bet with himself to stop smoking, but he can't.

There’s been another toxic spill. For the city councillor responsible, it’s just a big nuisance, having to endure media scrutiny until the crisis has passed. For the creatures in the lake, however, it’s a catastrophe. One turtle, in her desperate hour, summons up the courage to leave her home and speak truth to power. Turns out there’s more at stake than just the lake. Animated directly under the camera by Lynn Smith using paint and collage, What Rhymes with Toxic is both funny and deadly serious, and a sharp reminder that we are all interconnected.

There’s been another toxic spill. For the city councillor responsible, it’s just a big nuisance, having to endure media scrutiny until the crisis has passed. For the creatures in the lake, however, it’s a catastrophe. One turtle, in her desperate hour, summons up the courage to leave her home and speak truth to power. Turns out there’s more at stake than just the lake. Animated directly under the camera by Lynn Smith using paint and collage, What Rhymes with Toxic is both funny and deadly serious, and a sharp reminder that we are all interconnected.

There’s been another toxic spill. For the city councillor responsible, it’s just a big nuisance, having to endure media scrutiny until the crisis has passed. For the creatures in the lake, however, it’s a catastrophe. One turtle, in her desperate hour, summons up the courage to leave her home and speak truth to power. Turns out there’s more at stake than just the lake. Animated directly under the camera by Lynn Smith using paint and collage, What Rhymes with Toxic is both funny and deadly serious, and a sharp reminder that we are all interconnected.

This animated short features a night watchman who, with his dog Fang, discovers that museums are not just a collection of dusty old artefacts. With humour, the film shows how the past is very much alive and connected to our present.

A perceptive young boy attending his uncle's birthday party notices the unfortunate results of the man’s smoking habit.

This animated short features Leonard, a 6-year-old boy with the unusual hobby of collecting sounds. Transforming household noises around him into exciting fantasies, he creates an adventure story for his older brother in which knights chase away monsters and perform other daring deeds.

Two children prove to be the most courageous circus performers of them all.

Lynn Smith's animated short. Nominated by Genie Best Short animation.

Set to a rollicking doo-wop song by Canadian songwriter Zander Ary, the animated short Soup of the Day tells the amusing story of the dilemma a husband and wife face every time they go out to eat. Will their culinary differences douse the flames of romance, or will love prevail?

"Arithmetic is where numbers fly like pigeons in and out of your head." So begins Carl Sandburg's whimsical poem, read here by the author, and brought to life by Lynn Smith's delicate and colorful animation. Chockfull of birds and other animal life, this charming film explores the role that numbers play in our lives, while providing a memorable encounter with America's best-loved poet.