In this vibrant fantasy created using oil paintings, digital drawings, and graphic animation, a young boy and his two friends set out on a mission to find his father’s missing research on bird songs — the one thing that just might save their world from an epidemic where being afraid makes you ill.
In a world where fear spreads like disease, 10-year-old Tito is on a mission to save its inhabitants from themselves.
Tito loves helping his scientist dad, Rufus, with his inventions; Tito's mom, though, always a skeptic, worries that something will go terribly wrong while the two are experimenting. When Rufus's latest invention, a machine that can understand birds, starts smoking and sparking, Tito is injured and his mom decides that, for Tito's safety, they should live apart.
Years later, people start falling ill and the epidemic begins to spread: the cause, Tito determines, is fear. Recalling his father's research, Tito knows that the cure must be in understanding birdsong. In order to save others, Tito must resist falling victim to his own fear. Relying on his friends, Sarah and Buiú, he sets out to find his father and complete the research before it's too late.
Created using oil painting, digital drawing, and graphic animation, Tito and the Birds is brought to life through richly textured and vibrant images that add to the storytelling. It's like every background is its own character.
While seemingly fantastical, Tito and the Birds is a timely exploration of fear in contemporary society, where horrific headlines dominate the news cycle and people are inundated by media. It's in deconstructing the fear that Tito becomes a hero — finding strength in the faith that it's okay to be scared, so long as you don't let it define you.
JENNIFER BARKIN
Recommended for ages 8+ Content Advisory: limited use of strong language, children shown in perilous situations
This film is TIFF Kids–approved! Entertaining and illuminating stories from around the world for the whole family.
Screenings
Scotiabank 9
Scotiabank 3
Bell Lightbox 2