Kamasutra Rides Again

Quinzaine 1972 | Short film

The first cartoon to receive an « R » (adults only) rating in Australia. In this « sexual punch-up » (his own term), Bob Godfrey mocked his audiences, prodded impudently at the boundaries of censorship, and exposed the fears and anxieties haunting the male libido. Repeatedly, his anti-heroes take refuge in reassuringly manageable surrogates (masturbation fantasies, inflatable life-size dolls, cans of « Instant Sex »), rather than confront the terrifying prospect of a real, live woman.

Director

Bob Godfrey

He was born in Australia and he grew up in Essex. He had an ordinary council school education. He saw a lot of films and wasn’t in the least interested in how films were made. His first job at the age of seventeen was as an errand boy with Unilever Ltd at Blackfriars. He was transferred to the art studio of Unilever advertising agency, Lintas. Most of his friends were captured at Dunkirk during the war. In 1941 he joined the Royal Marines (1941-1946). He left Lintas and worked for David Hand, an old Disney director, on merchandising. He worked as a plasterer’s mate, and then was given a job by Peter Sachs of the W.M. Larkins Animation Studios. He worked on scenery for his animated cartoons. He converted his flat into a camera room and set about making primitive cartoons., Live Action comedies. One such film “Here comes the Commercial” was shown on the Goon Show. He started his own company, Biographic.