The Meatrix
{{Infobox film
| name = The Meatrix
| image = Meatrix poster.gif
| alt =
| caption = Promotional poster
| director = Louis Fox
| producer = Free Range Studios{{br}}GRACE
| writer = Louis Fox{{br}}Jonah Sachs
| narrator =
| starring = Louis Fox
| music = Louis Fox
| cinematography =
| editing =
| studio = Free Range Studios
| distributor =
| released = {{Film date|2003|11|03}}
| runtime = 4 minutes
| country = United States
| language = English
| budget =
| gross =
}}
The Meatrix is a short flash animation critical of factory farming and industrial agricultural practices. It has been translated into more than 30 languages and watched by more than 30 million people.{{cite web|title=About The Meatrix|url=http://www.themeatrix.com/about|work=The Meatrix|access-date=17 November 2010}} A parody of The Matrix series by Warner Bros. Entertainment, it was made by the green messaging firm Free Range Studios in 2003 as a commissioned project for the Grace Communications Foundation. Two sequels were released in 2006,{{cite web|url=http://www.mediathatmattersfest.org/films/the_meatrix/ |title=Media That Matters Film Festival: Films |publisher=Mediathatmattersfest.org |access-date=2009-07-17}} The Meatrix II: Revolting, and The Meatrix II ½.
Plot
In a dark satire of the 1999 film The Matrix, Leo, a pig on a seemingly bucolic family farm, is approached by Moopheus, an anthropomorphic bull. Moopheus shows Leo that the farm he has known is an illusion and that he is really trapped in a horrific factory farm. Leo and Moopheus then work to break out of the Meatrix and help others do the same, with some help from a third character, Chickity.{{cite book| last1 = Fog| first1 = Klaus| last2 = Budtz| first2 = Christian| last3 = Yakaboylu| first3 = Baris| title = Storytelling: Branding In Practice| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=ZGT6nATg8_YC&pg=PA167| year = 2005| publisher = Springer| isbn = 978-3-540-23501-9| page = 167 }} The animated short aims to encourage consumers to purchase organic food products and free-range meats.{{cite web|url=http://planetgreen.discovery.com/food-health/watch-the-meatrix.html |title=Watch The Meatrix : Planet Green |publisher=Planetgreen.discovery.com |access-date=2009-07-17}}
Awards
The Meatrix has won a number of awards,{{cite web|url=http://www.themeatrix.com/about/filmfests.html |title=Film Festivals and Awards |publisher=The Meatrix |access-date=2009-07-17}} including a 2005 Webby and the Annecy 2004 Netsurfers Award for Short Films. Free Range Studios claims that over 15 million people have viewed The Meatrix,{{cite web|url=http://www.themeatrix.com/news/ |title=News |publisher=The Meatrix |access-date=2009-07-17}}{{cite web|url=http://ecology.com/tv/vidpages/meatrix.php |title=Ecology TV | The Meatrix |publisher=Ecology.com |access-date=2009-07-17}} and it has been translated, either dubbed or subtitled, into 40 languages.{{cite web|url=http://www.themeatrix.com/intl/ |title=International |publisher=The Meatrix |access-date=2009-07-17}} The Meatrix and its two sequels were included as bonus material on the DVD for the 2006 film Fast Food Nation.
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{Official website|https://www.themeatrix.com/|The Meatrix official website}}
- {{IMDb title|0820928|The Meatrix}}
- {{YouTube|rEkc70ztOrc|The Meatrix I}}
- {{YouTube|VAN6G8sBNIE|The Meatrix II: Revolting|link=no}}
- {{YouTube|aGK3Rqoeux8|The Meatrix II ½|link=no}}
{{The Matrix}}
{{Animal rights}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Meatrix}}
Category:American environmental websites
Category:Films about animal rights
Category:Animated films about pigs
Category:Animated films about cattle
Category:Films set in factories
Category:Animated films set on farms