80 minutes, 2017

SYLVIO is a feature film about a small town gorilla who is stuck in his job at a debt collection agency. Deep down he just wants to express himself with his hand puppet, Herbert Herpels, and his puppet show that highlights the quiet moments of life. He accidentally joins a local TV program and a series of on-air mishaps threaten to shatter his identity, sending him on a journey of self-discovery.

SYLVIO was filmed entirely in Baltimore and funded from a Kickstarter campaign. The film premiered at the 2017 SXSW Film Festival and went on to play over 20 festivals worldwide. 

“This charming lo-fi indie is attuned to its own eccentric wavelength, equal parts absurd and poignant. A cult following for this bizarro effort seems quite possible." -Variety

"Exquisite yet uproarious. Sylvio is, at heart, a tale of independent artistry and its snares. The result is a generous, achingly tender comedy. -New Yorker

Peals (William of Future Islands + Bruce of Double Dagger) and director Albert Birney played “Trillium” for students at the Baltimore Montessori Public Charter School and asked them to write stories while listening to the song.

There was only one constraint: each story begins with “The woman in the room…”

Trillium brings the kids’ stories to life. The woman in the room transforms into a dinosaur and chats with a wise talking pelican. Leather-jacket-wearing bad boys, “weird alien cat-things,” peaceful apples, and money-shooting water guns all make noteworthy appearances. The video includes scenes from 17 stories written by the students, along with footage of them writing in the classroom.

To capture the 5th graders’ imaginative worlds, director Albert Birney took a purposefully lo-fi approach to the props and sets. Some costumes and props were modeled on students’ drawings, including the paper maché head of Moophette, the “weird alien cat thing.” Similarly, the visual effects were created mainly in-camera, using a mix of silent-movie-style jumpcuts and multi-layered projections. The interplay between multiple projections, minimal set design, and a black and white color palette sets a dreamlike stage for the video.

EYEBALLS IN THE DARKNESS (TUX AND FANNY PART 2)
(2022, 106 min)

A feature film sequel to my 2019 animated feature Tux and Fanny. I made this film using pixel animation, stop motion, puppets, and handmade recycled materials. It took 3 years to make.

Buzzer (2018, 8 min 40 sec) I found a dead fly under my table. I put it in a ziplock bag. Four years later I found the bag in a desk drawer and made this film. 

"An ordinary fly just trying to live a simple life."

Music by Jimmy Joe Roche and Alexander Borodin

I Can Hear The Trains Coming (2011, 3 min) For this video I covered myself in tape and danced around, imagining I was a planet. All of the animals are animated from the Animal Locomotion series by Muybridge from 1877. 

It Feels Like Forever (2018, 18 min) It's Christmas Eve and Chamfort is all alone in his big house by the ocean. But he's not lonely. There's plenty of things to do to keep busy, an endless amount of things to do to pass the time. Would you like a tour?


Written and Directed by Albert Birney
Starring Ben O'Brien
Produced by Marnie Ellen Hertzler
Sound by Chester Endersby Gwazda

Tux and Fanny (2019, 82 min)

Tux and Fanny are two friends living together in the forest and these are their adventures!

named one of The New Yorker Best Movies of 2019

2019 Ottawa International Animation Festival
2019 Animage Festival