Written and directed by Adam Elliot (Memoir of a Snail) this stop-motion animated tragicomedy was the Australian filmmakers first animated feature film.
A heart-warming tale of cross-continental connection, Mary and Max follows the lives and friendship of two unlikely pen-pals; Mary, a lonely Australian girl, and Max, a middle-aged man from New York with Asperger syndrome.
Through their letters, Mary and Max forge an unlikely bond that transcends age and distance, revealing the transformative power of friendship in the unlikeliest of circumstances.
The film is inspired by Elliot's relationship with his 'pen-friend' in New York whom he has been writing to for over twenty years.
Screening as part of our Past Encounters season (celebrating the 30th edition of Encounters Festival) Mary and Max followed a whole host of Adam Elliot's acclaimed short films, many of which played at Encounters throughout the 90s and early 00s. This included Harvie Krumpet which won the Oscar® for Best Animated Short in 2003.