The King of Shorts

Over the past several years, feature-length animation has won favor with everyone from your four-year-old to your English professor. If you enjoy animation as much as the next guy, but would rather be tied-up and whipped with a dirty gym sock then watch a 90-minute feel-good fest, Spike and Mike...

By Katey Margolis

March 17, 2011

[
        {
          "name": "Air - MediumRectangle - Inline Content - Mobile Display Size",
          "component": "18855504",
          "insertPoint": "2",
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "2"
        },{
          "name": "Editor Picks",
          "component": "17105533",
          "insertPoint": "4",
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "1"
        },{
          "name": "Inline Links",
          "component": "18349797",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 8,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Air - MediumRectangle - Combo - Inline Content",
          "component": "17105532",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 8,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Inline Links",
          "component": "18349797",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 12,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Air - Leaderboard Tower - Combo - Inline Content",
          "component": "17105535",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 12,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        }
      ]

Over the past several years, feature-length animation has won favor with everyone from your four-year-old to your English professor. If you enjoy animation as much as the next guy, but would rather be tied-up and whipped with a dirty gym sock then watch a 90-minute feel-good fest, Spike and Mike might have something for you. With their collections of short animated films, Craig "Spike" Decker and the late Mike Gribble began enlightening the masses in 1977, showing the early work of such luminaries as Mike Judge, Bill Plympton and Craig McCracken. Before the festival began, many underground and foreign works went virtually unseen. Since then, their festival has toured college campuses, art theaters and film festivals. Don't miss the fun when the show comes to town at the fabulous, newly renovated and reopened Texas Theatre, 231 W. Jefferson Blvd. in Oak Cliff. The "Sick and Twisted" festival of strange and unusual shorts plays at 8 and 10 p.m. Friday, while the the "New Generation Spike and Mike," showing shorts from a new breed of animators included in festivals around the globe, screens at 8 and 10 p.m. Saturday. Tickets are $8.50. Call 214-948-1546 or visit thetexastheatre.com for tickets and info.
Sat., March 19, 8 & 10 p.m.; Sun., March 20, 8 & 10 p.m., 2011

KEEP THE OBSERVER FREE... Since we started the Dallas Observer, it has been defined as the free, independent voice of Dallas, and we'd like to keep it that way. Your membership allows us to continue offering readers access to our incisive coverage of local news, food, and culture with no paywalls. You can support us by joining as a member for as little as $1.