Going against his usual animation style of bubbling lines, Richard Condie employs computer animation to bring life to his goofy-looking characterizations in the 1996 short La Salla. In this 8-minute offering, a man plays with his toys and describes how much fun he has in operatic exclamations. A devil persistently offers him an apple, and he must resist, but he loses his head in this fight against temptation. To continue his enjoyment of his array of toys, this man must sing himself back together, but the tossing and turning of the room show a larger perspective.
This colourful and absurdist comedy brings surreal opera to an animated art piece about toys and resisting temptation and the outside world. The main character is safe in his small room, playing with wind-up toys and shooting cows out of cannons. Condie enlisted the help of Canadian actor Jay Brazeau to sing the operatic lines. You may not recognize his voice, but Brazeau has a familiar face, with countless roles in film and TV. La Salla was honoured with a nomination at the 1997 Academy Awards for Best Animated Short.
