スピリット・オブ・クリスマス (1995年の短編)
「スピリット・オブ・クリスマス[1]」（The Spirit of Christmas）、通称「ジーザス対サンタ」（Jesus vs. Santa）は、後に『サウスパーク』（1997年初放映）を作るトレイ・パーカーとマット・ストーンが、1995年に制作した短編アニメーション作品である。これが『サウスパーク』の直接の原型となった[1]。
彼らは1992年にも同名の作品『スピリット・オブ・クリスマス[2]』（The Spirit of Christmas、通称「ジーザス対フロスティー[2]」（Jesus vs．Frosty））を制作しており、それとの区別のため副題の「ジーザス対サンタ」でも知られる。
英語版
en:The Spirit of Christmas (short films)(oldid=1061856354)、Production節およびRelease and reception節
Production
In 1995, after seeing the Jesus vs. Frosty film, Fox Broadcasting Company executive Brian Graden paid Stone and Parker $1,000 to make another animated short as a video Christmas card that he could send to friends.[3][4] In turn, the duo created Jesus vs. Santa. Graden initially distributed the video to eighty friends in December 1995.
As Jesus vs. Santa bloomed into popularity, Stone and Parker wanted to turn the short into an adult-animated television series called South Park, and Fox was the first network to consider acquiring the rights to the show. After negotiations with Stone and Parker, Fox declined to get involved due to the show including the talking poo character called Mr. Hankey and didn't want anything to do with it as a result. After months' being passed around on bootleg video, the short caught the attention of cable network Comedy Central, which hired the pair to develop the series. The show premiered in the United States with "Cartman Gets an Anal Probe" on August 13, 1997, and became the highest rated show that put the spotlight on the network.
This version of The Spirit of Christmas features an animation style very similar to that of the eventual South Park series, as well as more developed versions of Stan, Kyle, Cartman and Kenny (each of whom are referred to by name) living in South Park. Wendy Testaburger additionally appears unnamed in a non-speaking role as a child sitting on Santa's lap, as well as making her first appearance in this version. The film largely establishes the characters as they are used in South Park and contains elements that recur in the series, such as Kyle being a Jew and rats eating Kenny's corpse. The film reportedly had a budget of $750, with Parker and Stone keeping the remainder of their commission.
Clips from Jesus vs. Santa are shown in a fourth season episode of South Park. In the episode, "A Very Crappy Christmas", the boys try to create a short animated film to bring back the spirit of Christmas to South Park. During the episode a few parts of "The Spirit of Christmas" are used as the film the boys are making.
Release and reception
Jesus vs. Santa received a Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for best animation in 1996.[5]
The film can be found on the South Park The Hits: Volume 1 DVD. A short clip is visible in a drive-in movie screen in some openers of South Park.
It was also included in AVI format on the first 100,000 pressings of Tiger Woods '99 for PlayStation. It is accessible from the game disc by PC. This unauthorized use caused the game to be recalled in January 1999 by Electronic Arts.[6]
出典
書誌情報
- 高橋ヨシキ:編著、『公式版 サウスパーク コンプリート・ガイド』、洋泉社、2001。ISBN 4-898691-511-9
