time he listened to Archers of Loaf songs. Reminiscing a decade later, he remarked, "I was on the 3rd floor of Market House about 20 hours a day painting cels for [the film]". There was a janitor at his school named Mel, who according to Krause, "would sing in a beautiful baritone as he cleaned up around the cafeteria." Krause wanted Mel to voice the bird in his film, but Mel struggled in pronouncing a critical line. Eventually, Krause settled on voicing the character himself. His brother Will voiced the monkey and was the only other actor in the film. Critical reception Morgan Miller of Film Threat gave Mister Smile three stars and called it "a very silly cartoon". His review noted the minimalist style of the animation and compared the bird's soliloquy to Robert Mitchum's in The Night of the Hunter. Dan Sarto of Animation World Magazine wrote that the film was a "crowd favorite" at the Ottawa International Student Animation Festival. He appreciated the film and felt that it was a "quirky, funny tale". Both critics praised the humorous ending. Richard Roeper also saw similarities with Night of the Hunter, writing "Give this animated flick credit for reaching back a bit". Accolades The film won First Prize in the Undergraduate/First Year Films category at the 1999 Ottawa International Student Animation Festival, the First Prize Animation Award at the 2000 USA Film Festival, and the Best Animated Film Award at the 24th Annual Atlanta Film & Video Festival. It also screened at the 1999 Chicago International Film Festival and at a Rooftop Films festival. See also Geraldine (2000 film) Fish Heads Fugue and Other Tales for Twilight Le Building References External links 1999 films 1990s animated short films American comedy short films American animated short films American independent films American student films Films about size change Animated films about apes Animated films about birds Animated films about chickens Animated films about monkeys Animated films about squirrels Rhode Island School of Design 1990s English-language films 1990s American films