METAMORPHOSIS (1974)
16mm, color, sound, 2m
“That was my first finished 16mm animation, done in 1974 in New York, presented in 1975 as my graduation animation for Columbia’s MFA in Film (that I had delayed for 7 years), then submitted professionally in early 1976, after moving to Vermont, to ASIFA-East’s Animation Festival (it won second prize in the “non-sponsored” category after George Griffin’s “Viewmaster”). I took out ‘New York City’ in 1976.” (David Ehrlich, 2024)
ALBUM LEAF (1976)
16mm, color, sound, 2m
“I think I shot it in 16mm and reduced it to 8mm to fit on a continuous reel for an ML Art Gallery exhibit with my wood paintings. It was the first and only time I began with the music (Scriabin’s piano Etude) and choreographed my animation to it. Scriabin was a strong influence on my creative thinking at the time, within his invention of color cylinders with covers raised on each one as he hit the attached piano keys. He even got the Maharaja of Mysore to set up his music hall with large fans that blew periodic wafts of various incense synchronized with the sequential playing of harmony and color. I just did not enjoy controlling my visuals to match the sound and never did it again. : )” (David Ehrlich, 2024)
ROBOT (1977)
16mm, color, sound, 2.5m
“The return home of a cubic figure, in contradictory multi-perspective, with the coloring based upon a cyclical twelve-tone spectrum.” (David Ehrlich)
VERMONT ETUDE (1977)
16mm, color, sound, 2.5m
“Layered tracing paper drawings, inspired by the effect of the mountain mist and by animal tracks softly disappearing in the falling snow.” (David Ehrlich)
ROBOT TWO (1978)
16mm, color, silent 24fps, 2m
“Cubic forms emerge and dissolve through morning mists.” (David Ehrlich)
ROBOT TWO [sound version] (1978)
16mm, color, sound, 2m
“Al Jarnow and I had a long talk in ’77 about preserving the purity of animation by keeping it silent. I experimented by initially keeping “Robot Two” silent. Six months later, after festival problems, with viewers calling out “Sound!” to the projectionist (even with adding that title card!), I gave in and created a music track with toy instruments that was inspired by the Japanese Noh Theater music I had been listening to while doing the drawings for the film. At least it was MY created music. I think Al was disappointed.” (David Ehrlich, 2024)
VERMONT ETUDE, NO. 2 (1979)
16mm, color, sound, 4m
“Inspired by the wildlife of Vermont, the mountains, the rising and setting of the sun, and the flight of bees.” (David Ehrlich)
PRECIOUS METAL (1980)
16mm, color, sound, 3.5m
“A visual and musical elaboration on the Crab Canon in which the theme of intersecting beams is played against itself going backwards.” (David Ehrlich)
SYNTHETIC MOVEMENTS: NEW DIRECTIONS FOR CONTEMPORARY AMERICAN ANIMATION [title sequence] (1980)
This was an American Federation of the Arts touring program of contemporary animation compiled in 1980. It included Ehrlich’s film Precious Metal, and Ehrlich also created a title sequence for the program.
PRECIOUS METAL [negative version] (1980)
16mm, color, sound, 3.5m
An alternative version was created by Ehrlich by printing the film’s color original negative as reversal to reversal print stock, resulting in prints with negative polarity. When I asked him about this, he replied:
“It was an intentional test to see if I could get the impression of an artifact from another planet. I liked it a lot and screened it a few times in Vermont, ultimately deciding I had to choose between the two versions for festivals and wider distribution. I chose the positive print to keep the focus on the retrograde structure and my original intention. Soon my distributor, Ron Epple, sent me Disney’s offer to license the film (positive) to appear suddenly in one of their theme parks as their “space ship” rounded a corner into outer space. So even the positive print had the element of outer space at the time. I turned down Disney’s offer. : )” (David Ehrlich, 2024)
DISSIPATIVE DIALOGUES (1982)
16mm, bw, sound, 3m
“Black calligraphic line reveals a series of evanescent encounters between a man and a woman, ending finally in a kiss.” (David Ehrlich)
PRECIOUS METAL VARIATIONS (1983)
35mm, color, sound, 3.5m
“An exploration of surface and edge, color and contour, functions to create a visual dialogue between inside and outside. Music by Laurie Spiegel.” (David Ehrlich)
POINT (1984)
35mm, color, sound, 3m
“A pointillist world embraces and integrates the movement of bees, stars and atoms, Kandinsky’s continuum of point to line to plane. Music by Laurie Spiegel.” (David Ehrlich)
KUNIN INAUGURATION PSA (1985)
16mm, color, live music, 30 seconds
The Vermont State Arts Council commissioned Ehrlich to make this PSA to screen at the inauguration party for Madeleine Kunin, the first woman elected governor in the state. It was made silent, and presented at the party with live singing by children from Ehrlich’s animation workshops.
PERPETUAL REVIVAL (1985) (w/ Adrian Petringenaru)
35mm, color, sound, 7m
“It’s a film tracing the greatest art in history, ending with Brancusi’s work.” (David Ehrlich, 2024)
This film was Ehrlich’s first international collaboration, made with Romanian filmmaker Adrian Petringenaru, although political issues at the time prevented Ehrlich from ever getting a 35mm print of the film himself. Ehrlich’s section of the film exists as a discrete section with the title Exhibit.
DISSIPATIVE FANTASIES (1986)
35mm, color, sound, 4.5m
“An individual finds that the world that intrudes upon his personal life cannot be escaped, and he turns to the next generation. Music by Laurie Spiegel.” (David Ehrlich)
PIXEL (1987)
35mm, color, sound, 3m
“Hand-drawn and hand-colored on a pixel grid, the film is a meditative evocation of medieval stained glass windows. Music by Michael Stearns.” (David Ehrlich)
DRYADS (1988)
35mm, color, sound, 3m
“Structural transformations of contemporary wood sprites. Music by Laurie Spiegel.” (David Ehrlich)
A CHILD’S DREAM (1990)
35mm, color, sound, 5m
“Animating scenes of nature designed by children and underlighting through six layers yields a dreamlike image of a forgotten past. Music by Normand Roger & Denis Chartrand.” (David Ehrlich)
CHAOS UNBOUND (1991) (w/ Kjersti Normann)
16mm, color, sound, 2m
Music by Normand Roger.
DANCE OF NATURE (1991) (w/ Karin Sletten)
16mm, color, sound, 4m
“The film traces elements of nature common to Ehrlich’s Vermont and Sletten’s native Norway. Music by Tom Farrell.” (David Ehrlich)
ETUDE (1994)
16mm, color, sound, 4m
“An animated clay-painting in homage to Abstract Expressionism. Music by Tom Farrell.” (David Ehrlich)
INTERSTITIAL WAVESCAPES (1995)
35mm, color, sound, 3.5m
“Waves are the layered effects of the evolution of matter and space, the fluctuating surface of the sea, and the ever-extending formations of earth and rock. Music by Tom Farrell.” (David Ehrlich)
ROBOT RERUN (1996)
35mm, color, sound, 4.5m
“Seeming to move forward in time and space, we exist in perpetual cycles, both creating and being created by our televised environments, which in the end are only reflections of our dreams. Music by Tom Farrell.” (David Ehrlich)
ASIFA VARIATIONS (1997)
35mm, color, sound, 3.5m
“A calligraphic ode to the ASIFA logo and various personalities in the International Animation Association. Music by Tom Farrell.” (David Ehrlich)
RADIANT FLUX (1998)
35mm, color, sound, 3.5m
“There is no mass, but only waves of energy flowing continuously outwards towards our future leaving traces of luminescent color. Music by Tom Farrell.” (David Ehrlich)
COLOR RUN (2001)
16mm, color, sound, 6.5m
“Clay animation in process of becoming a painting. Music by Tom Farrell.” (David Ehrlich)
CURRENT EVENTS (2002)
35mm, color, sound, 4m
“Abstract calligraphic lines evoke meditative rhythms of nature. Music by Laurie Spiegel.” (David Ehrlich)
TAKING COLOR FOR A WALK (2002)
16mm, color, sound, 5m
“An homage to Paul Klee. Color is taken for a walk through its various mixes and transformations. Music by Larry Polansky & Kyoko Kobayashi.” (David Ehrlich)
LINE DANCE (2008)
35mm, color, sound, 3m
“Linear waves of color repeat and overlap in a meditative dance of life. Music by Chenguan Tszo.” (David Ehrlich)
CLAY (2008)
16mm, color, 7m
POZNANIE (2008/12)
16mm/digital, color, sound, 3.5m
Initially shot on 16mm in 2008, this film was transferred to digital and finished in that form in 2012.
“Working the color clay, my mind turned first to the way in which flowers swell and burst into radiant color, and then to mountain landscapes bathed in linear waves of vibrating light.” (David Ehrlich)
MEDITATIONS (2013)
digital, color, 4m
“Sensuality intrudes upon abstract meditation until it is at one with it. Music by Chenguan Tszo.” (David Ehrlich)
PENCIL TEST (2013)
digital, color, 3.5m
“From line to surface, melody to harmony, and purity to sensuality. Music by Chenguan Tszo.” (David Ehrlich)
CHINA VIOLET (2014)
digital, color, 3.5m
“As he leaves China after five years, Ehrlich created a gentle ode to the Chinese land and its people. Music by Fang Xin.” (David Ehrlich)
BIO (2015)
digital, color, 3.5m
“Dedicated to his father who was a doctor, Ehrlich’s animation is a lyrical meditation on the dynamics and transformations of human and plant biology. Music by Fang Xin.” (David Ehrlich)
COLOR DANCE (2016)
digital, color, 3m
“Color contrasts in time have their own radiations, particles dancing on the retina of our memories of Nature. Music by Fang Xin.” (David Ehrlich)
SHAN (2017)
digital, color, 3m
“A meditation, in the blue-green mountains, on age and timelessness. Music by Fang Xin.” (David Ehrlich)
LIN (2018)
digital, color, 3m
“A forest, becoming both less and more as the seasons go by, reaches old age, upright and alone. Music by Fang Xin.” (David Ehrlich)
ONLY THE SEAS LIVE FOREVER (2020)
digital, color, 4m
“A meditation on the sea, ever moving and changing, like life itself. Music by Chenguan Tszo.” (David Ehrlich)
COMING OR GOING (2020)
digital, color, 3m
“In memory of my mother, figures touch, separate, then merge into one another until they separate again. Music by Chenguan Tszo.” (David Ehrlich)
LA CRÉATION DU MONDE (2021)
digital, color, 3.5m
“The cycle of life repeats as worlds collide, disintegrate and merge in transcendent peace. Music by Chenguan Tszo.” (David Ehrlich)
SING, DAVID, SING (2023)
digital, color, 2.5m
“Behind a curtain of shifting sound and color, David finds his voice and begins to sing. Music by Chenguan Tszo” (David Ehrlich)
RA TI TA TI (1993/2023)
16mm/digital, color, 4.5m
This film was initially shot on 16mm in 1993, but only finalized in digital in 2023.
“Animation of toy blocks for small children and for those with young hearts.” (David Ehrlich)
DAVID’S FABLES (1993/2023)
16mm/digital, color, 3.5m
This film was initially shot on 16mm in 1993, but only finalized in digital in 2023.
A NEW WORLD (2024)
digital, color, sound, 4m
“Becoming independent can be both invigorating and lonely, for individuals as well as for nations. Music by Fang Xin.” (David Ehrlich)
ODE TO MY PENCIL (2025)
digital, monochrome, sound, 1.5m
“A homage to my no.2 pencil, inspiring me from childhood through a lifetime of creativity. Music by Chenguan Tszo” (David Ehrlich)
A MOUNTAIN CRITTER’S DREAM (2025)
digital, color, sound, 3m
“In expressionist imagery from childhood memories, a lonely dog attempts to communicate with other beings but experiences only sad disappointment. Music by Fang Xin.” (David Ehrlich)
CONTINUAL REBIRTH (2025)
digital, monochrome, sound, 2m
“As changing shapes continually come forward, they coalesce to a more gentle reality that moves off into the unknown. Music by Fang Xin.” (David Ehrlich)
COLLABORATIVE FILMS
ACADEMY LEADER VARIATIONS (1987)
35mm, bw & color, sound, 6m
This film was an international animation collaborative project organized and directed by David Ehrlich with assistance from ASIFA, and featuring contributions from a total of 21 animators from Switzerland, the US, Poland, and China. Complete credits are as follows:
SWITZERLAND: Georges Schwizgebel, Claude Luyet, Daniel Suter, Martial Wannaz
USA: David Ehrlich, Jane Aaron, Skip Battaglia, Paul Glabicki, George Griffin, Al Jarnow
POLAND: Jerzy Kucia, Piotr Dumała, Stanisław Lenartowicz, Krzysztof Kiwerski, (sound by Mieczyslaw Janik) (Studio Małych Form, Filmowych Se-Ma-For Łódź Studio, Filmów Animowanich Kraków)
PEOPLE’S REP. OF CHINA: Yan Ding Xian, A Da, Chang Guang Xi, He Yu Men, Hu Jin Qing, Lin Wen Xiao (Shanghai Animation Studio)
ANIMATED SELF-PORTRAITS (1989)
35mm, color, sound, 8m
Following the success of Academy Leader Variations, this film was an international animation collaborative project organized and directed by David Ehrlich with assistance from ASIFA, and featuring contributions from a total of 21 animators from the US, Estonia, Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, and Japan. Complete credits are as follows:
USA: Sally Cruikshank, David Ehrlich, Candy Kugel, Bill Plympton, Maureen Selwood
ESTONIA U.S.S.R.: Mati Kütt, Riho Unt, Hardi Volmer, Priit Pärn
CZECHOSLOVAKIA: Jan Švankmajer, Pavel Koutský, Jiří Barta
YUGOSLAVIA: Bordo Dovniković, Joško Marušić, Dušan Vukotić, Nikola Majdak
JAPAN:, Renzo Kinoshita, Kihachiro Kawamoto, Osamu Tezuka
GENGHIS KHAN (1993)
Directed by Miagmar Sodnompilin, produced by Ehrlich for Italtoons
35mm, color, sound, 8m
CHILDREN’S ANIMATION WORKSHOP FILMS
FANTASIES: ANIMATION OF VERMONT SCHOOLCHILDREN (1980)
16mm, color, sound, 10m
“A collection of vignettes animated by Ehrlich’s young students, with connecting segments by Ehrlich.” (David Ehrlich)
ALBERT BRIDGE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRESENTS: OLYMPICS (1984)
16mm, color, sound, 5m
This film was made as part of a children’s animation workshop taught by David Ehrlich.
ONE DAY IN CHINA (1983)
16mm, color, sound, 3m
“David Ehrlich, A Da, Francine Leger at AAA, Annecy, France.” (David Ehrlich)
TRASFORMAZIONI FANTASTICHE DI PAROLE INGLESI (1985)
16mm, color, sound, 4.5m
This film was made as part of a children’s animation workshop taught in Torino, Italy at Lanterna Magica by David Ehrlich.
ATTACK OF THE BUDWORM (1985)
16mm, color, sound, 3.5m
This film was made as part of a children’s animation workshop taught by David Ehrlich and Wilson Lazaretti at Newark Elementary School in Newark, Vermont.
WHAT DOES LOVE MEAN TO YOU? (1987)
16mm, color, sound, 7m
This title is also listed in Ehrlich’s cv as Animation ’87.
“ASIFA Children’s Workshops in 8 nations.” (David Ehrlich)
A FRIENDLY FLYING (1988)
35mm, color, sound, 5m
“David Ehrlich at Yi Bai Bao Workshop in Shanghai, China.” (David Ehrlich)
MONGOLIAN ANIMATION (1992)
16mm, color, sound, 2m
“David Ehrlich at Ulan Baatar Children’s Palace, Mongolia.” (David Ehrlich)
PALABRAS MOVILES / MOVABLE WORDS (1992)
16mm, color, sound, 3m
“David Ehrlich & Mario Garcia-Montes at ICAIC, Havana,Cuba.” (David Ehrlich)
PELE’S REVENGE (1994)
16mm, color, sound, 3m
“David Ehrlich in Honolulu, Hawaii.” (David Ehrlich)
YOU DON’T HAVE TO (1994)
16mm, color, sound, 4m
“David Ehrlich & Edo Lukman at SAF, Cakovec, Croatia.” (David Ehrlich)
TRAVELS OF HENRY BALL (1994)
16mm, color, sound, 2m
“David Ehrlich & Charles Zee in Shanghai, China.” (David Ehrlich)
PICASSOLINA (2002)
16mm, color, sound, 2m
“David Ehrlich & Edo Lukman at SAF, Cakovec, Croatia.” (David Ehrlich)
ANIMATED HOLOGRAMS
OEDIPUS AT COLONUS (1978)
45 seconds
RANKO’S FANTASY (1983)
45 seconds
PHALLACY (1984)
45 seconds
OEDIPUS AT COLONUS, NO. 2 (1987)
45 seconds
LIGHTSTRUCK 