Hundreds of ideas, hundreds of gags and hundreds of beavers. Cheslik and Tews made slapstick for the 21st century

The more movies a person watches in a lifetime, the harder it is to surprise them. The backdrops may change, but the plot patterns remain the same. Technologies evolve, but the repertoire of means of expression remains more or less unchanged. And yet, every now and then someone finds a new path and makes a film that breaks out of familiar categories and compartments.

He does not have to reinvent the wheel, he just needs to combine known procedures in an innovative way. Mike Cheslik and Ryland Brickson Cole Tews did it.

Their second feature, Hundred Beavers, which they co-wrote, with Cheslik directing and editing and Tews in the lead role, toured dozens of festivals around the world last year, winning numerous awards and receiving rave reviews from critics and audiences alike.

Between Buster Keaton and Looney Tunes

The film takes place in the United States of the 19th century. Its protagonist is Jean Kayak, a hop worker who loses his business for the production of apple brandy and finds himself alone in the middle of snowy forests.

In order to survive, he has to make a fire, catch something to eat and ideally also a few beavers. He can sell their skin at the grocer’s, whose pretty (albeit rather mischievous) daughter