I Love You, Apple, I Love You, Orange

Synopsis

Maggie (Smithey) lives alone and spends her days writing lists and talking to fruits and vegetables that have come to life. The arrival of Martin (Kim), via a blind date set up by Maggie's mother (Blake), sparks a romantic relationship that threatens the routine and quiet order of Maggie's daily life as she labors to keep Martin from discovering her inner world.

Cast

Production

The film took eight years to complete. With no budget to speak of, Kim relied on a DIY approach. His no-frills attitude toward production was shaped in part by the Dogme 95 movement. Kim worked on the film while managing a full-time job. Inspiration for I Love You, Apple, I Love You, Orange was drawn from a variety of sources including, Mark Haddon's novel The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, Kristen Kosmas's play The Mayor of Baltimore, and the films The Hole, What Time Is It There?, Alice, The Sweet Hereafter, Punch-Drunk Love, and Brief Encounter. Real foods were used as stop-animated characters. A single ham, playing a major role, was used during the entire year and a half of production. After six months, it became increasingly difficult to physically maneuver and handle the ham for animating purposes due to its awful smell.

Critical reception

The film has received praise from critics. David Schmader of The Stranger called the movie, "a slow, scary, and surprising romance, anchored by a tough, vanity-free performance by Lori Anne Smithey." And critic Sean Kilpatrick lauded it in Hobart, calling the film, "a little poem."

I Love You, Apple, I Love You, Orange won the Bullet Award at the 2013 Columbia Gorge International Film Festival.