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Oscar® Winner, Best Short Film (Animated), 1978

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1978 7 min
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In this Oscar®-winning animated short, Ralph's day gets off to a bad start when he dismisses his wife's orders to clear the snow from the front walk. When he comes home and finds the mailman dead on his front stairs, Ralph attempts a massive cover-up with disastrous results. One dead mailman leads to a case of mistaken identity, a runaway bride, and a very confused coroner. Life starts looking up for Ralph once he decides to stop worrying about it all.

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This work deals with mature subject matter. Viewer discretion is advised.
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In this Oscar®-winning animated short, Ralph's day gets off to a bad start when he dismisses his wife's orders to clear the snow from the front walk. When he comes home and finds the mailman dead on his front stairs, Ralph attempts a massive cover-up with disastrous results. One dead mailman leads to a case of mistaken identity, a runaway bride, and a very confused coroner. Life starts looking up for Ralph once he decides to stop worrying about it all.

This work deals with mature subject matter. Viewer discretion is advised.
  • story
    John Weldon
    Eunice Macaulay
  • direction
    John Weldon
    Eunice Macaulay
  • animation
    John Weldon
    Eunice Macaulay
  • narration
    Sandy Sanderson
  • music
    Karl Duplessis
  • animation camera
    Raymond Dumas
    Simon Leblanc
  • re-recording
    Jean-Pierre Joutel
    Michel Descombes
  • administration
    Diane Bergeron
  • producer
    Derek Lamb

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Education

Ages 15 to 17
Study Guide
School subjects
Discuss the meaning of the word, "serendipity." How does it relate to the series of soap opera-like events in this film? Discuss how misinterpreting events colours our decisions about how to handle them. Do the series of events seem plausible? Write a rap song on the theme "serendipity."
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Home licence (worldwide); Classroom licence (Canada only)

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Institutional licence

The institutional price includes the rights to screen this film in institutional settings and in free public screenings.