'Olaf, happy little canon' (‘Olaf, vrolijk klein kanonnetje’) is a fairytale about a cannon that is confronted with itself in a fragile world. Olaf thoroughly enjoys his safe life in a fragile village, until on his fourteenth birthday he is confronted with the destructive side of his life as a cannon. Because he thinks he is insufferable, he sets out into the world to seek an elegant solution for this devastating problem.
‘Olaf, happy little canon’ is making the rounds in the festival circuit. The film was produced entirely in-house, under the flag of Happy Ship.
The film, which lasts eleven minutes, is a computer-animated black-and-white narrative in a singular and innovative style, as for the audio-visuals and the manner in which it is narrated. Many of the digital techniques are specifically intended to give a hand-made feel, with purposeful errors and extremely analogue sounds juxtaposed with the digital plastic and hard contrast of the computer.