From Norway to Nairobi: Torill Kove Discusses Her Acclaimed Short, ‘Maybe Elephants’ [Video]

Oscar-winning animator Torill Kove explores memory, adolescence and the strength of familial bonds in Maybe Elephants, a sequel to her Oscar-nominated short Me and My Moulton. Drawing on Kove’s own experiences in Nairobi, her latest film blends autobiography with inspired storytelling to contemplate how we reconstruct the past to navigate our emotions. In this interview, Kove shares insights into her inspirations, challenges and creative process.

Kove’s fourth short co-produced by the National Film Board of Canada and Norway’s Mikrofilm, Maybe Elephants is one of the 15 films shortlisted for this year’s Oscar for Best Animated Short Film.

What motivated you to make this film?

Torill Kove: I see this film as a sequel to my 2015 short, Me and My Moulton, which was a semi-biographical snapshot of my family in the 1960s, when my sisters and I were under 10 years old and my parents were young and hip. In Maybe Elephants, I’m revisiting the …