Pam and Poum

Overview

Pam et Poum (1957) is the first animated short film conceived by the Swiss couple Gisèle and Ernest "Nag" Ansorge. The project was born entirely in their own apartment, a self-taught endeavor after they discovered the puppetry work of the Czech master Jiří Trnka. The story follows the interactions and small adventures of a stuffed bear and monkey named Pam and Poum. Instead of building an artificial set from scratch, the filmmakers used the furniture, corners, and atmosphere of their own Lausanne apartment as a real-life setting for the figures, bringing the toys to life through frame-by-frame animation. The puppets used originally belonged to Gisèle's nephew.