Stock trading and investing might not sound like the most obvious choice a children’s book, but the 2021 “Stonks on the Moon!” by the pseudonymous Professor Clark offered a playful mix of child-friendly fiction (complete with anthropomorphic animals and a story about believing in one’s purpose) with sly tributes to investing world’s machinations – including the “to the moon” focus of “apes” and characters that bore more than a coincidental resemblance to Tesla chieftain Elon Musk and financial analyst Keith Gill.
Professor Clark has brought back the characters from his book into an animated short called “Stonks Goes the Distance!” Billed as “an epic underdog tale and allegory for the ongoing GME Short Squeeze through Bear and Bull Markets!” (GME stands for GameStop, for those with no clue on what’s happening on Wall Street.)
However, on its own term “Stonks Goes the Distance!” is a charming children’s entertainment about the plucky young ape Stonks who is appalled to see his beloved boxer Bull get knocked out by the nine-foot-tall Bear. When Bear challenges the boxing arena to put forth a new opponent, little Stonks volunteers. The haughty ursine gives Stonks a month to train for the fight, and with Bull’s help the child ape becomes a King Kong-worthy fighter.
With a Morgan Freeman soundalike narrator and a deceptively lo-fi animated style, “Stonks Goes the Distance!” offers something of value for kids and grown-ups. This is one of the most delightful animated short films of the year.