Janet Perlman facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Janet Perlman
Janet Perlman
Born	Janet Laurie Perlman 1954 (age 70–71) Canada
Occupation	Animator, author

Janet Laurie Perlman is a talented Canadian animator and author. She writes and illustrates books for children. Her work includes the short film The Tender Tale of Cinderella Penguin. This film was even nominated for an Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film. It also won a Parents' Choice Award.

Janet Perlman has made 13 short films. These films have won over 60 awards! She used to be married to animation producer Derek Lamb. They worked together at the National Film Board of Canada. Later, they started their own company, Lamb-Perlman Productions. Today, Janet is a partner at Hulascope Studio in Montreal.

She has created animation for famous TV shows like Sesame Street and NOVA. With Derek Lamb, she made opening sequences for the PBS series Mystery!. She also helped animate The Soldier's Tale for PBS's Great Performances. Janet has taught animation at top universities. These include Harvard University and Concordia University. Even after their marriage ended, she and Derek Lamb continued to work together until his death in 2005.

Janet Perlman's Penguin Creations

Janet Perlman loves penguins! She has made several films and books featuring these cute birds. Her short film The Tender Tale of Cinderella Penguin was turned into a children's book. It was called Cinderella Penguin.

She also created a funny graphic novel called Penguins Behind Bars. This book was made into an animated short film in 2003. The film won four awards. One of them was the Platinum Award at the WorldFest-Houston International Film Festival. This short film even aired on Adult Swim. Janet has also written and illustrated other penguin books. These include The Emperor Penguin's New Clothes and The Penguin and the Pea.

Working with the National Film Board of Canada

Janet Perlman has made many films with the National Film Board of Canada (NFB). Besides her famous The Tender Tale of Cinderella Penguin, she made Lady Fishbourne's Complete Guide to Better Table Manners in 1976. This film won first prize at the Ottawa International Film Festival.

In 2005, she co-produced Invasion of the Space Lobsters. This film was a funny look at confusing language. She also worked as an animator on The Hottest Show on Earth (1977). She co-directed Why Me? with Derek Lamb in 1978. Her 2014 short film is called Monsieur Pug. Janet also helped animate Bob's Birthday. This NFB co-produced short film won an Oscar.

The ShowPeace Series

While at the NFB, Janet Perlman helped create the ShowPeace animation series. This series teaches about conflict resolution. Her film Bully Dance was part of this series. It won thirteen awards! These included Best Animated Short Film from the Children's Jury. It also won the Grand Prix de Montréal for Best Short Film.

Another film in the series was Dinner for Two. This film won twelve awards. It received a Grand Prix des Amériques at the Montreal World Film Festival. It also won a UNICEF Jury Award at the Berlin International Film Festival. Janet later adapted Dinner for Two into a book called The Delicious Bug.

Hulascope Studio Projects

Janet Perlman started Hulascope Studio with Judith Gruber-Stitzer. Judith is a film composer and used to work with Janet at the NFB. Their studio creates animated projects for television.

Penguins Behind Bars was a big project for Hulascope. It was a funny take on old movies about women in prison. Hulascope and the NFB worked together to make it for Cartoon Network's Adult Swim. Janet co-wrote the film with Derek Lamb.

Other Creative Works

Janet Perlman's film Sorry Film Not Ready has a funny story behind it. She had entered a film called Llama Cookin' into the Ottawa International Animation Festival. But the film wasn't ready! With only two weeks left, she quickly put together some animation. She wasn't happy with it. She tried to remove her film from the festival online but couldn't. So, she changed the title to Sorry Film Not Ready. She hoped the festival organizers would understand. Instead, they extended the deadline! So, Janet finished a one-minute film with that title, and it was accepted.

At the 1994 Ottawa International Animation Festival, Janet's short film My Favourite Things That I Love was popular. But it also confused the audience. The jury gave her a funny "Best Bad Taste Award" for it. The film later received a "Most Horrible Music Award" from the Annecy International Animated Film Festival.