Director Patrick Smith, a fellow of the New York Foundation of the Arts and an AMPAS member, set out to make a critique of American gun culture with this animated film featuring 2,328 firearms — 24 guns a second — without making his case explicit.  “Gun Shop” made the rounds on the film festival circuit, earning awards from the Literally Short Film Festival, the Woods Hole Film Festival, the Florida Animation Festival, and ASIFA East and ASIFA San Francisco.

Over the past few years I’ve learned the striking visual power of objects. The every day objects that surround us in our lives, or are displayed in the media, are a credible vehicle for expressing many ideas about our world, if organized to do so. They are very often mundane, but sometimes extraordinary. I discovered that a simple 24 frames per second juxtaposition and choreographed audio sync can bring these objects to life, creating a mesmerizing effect that has the distinct ability to convey complex ideas, and concise visual interpretations of culture, economics, personality and philosophy.”
— Patrick Smith