Rejected

Rejected is a surreal animated short film by animator Don Hertzfeldt that has received numerous awards from film festivals around the world. By combining absurd juxtapositions and nonsense logic, Hertzfeldt created a comedy about a series of supposedly commissioned advertisements that were rejected immediately upon review. The humor ranges from bizarre non-sequitur moments to gratuitous blood and mutilation, all the while being contrasted with joyful music and the first movement of Beethoven's 9th Symphony.

Rejected presents a story that is very reflexive, constantly reminding its audience that the advertisements have been drawn by Don Hertzfeldt. In a documentary style the narrative even follows the downward progression that both the animator and his cartoons follow, each one reflecting the other. The animations themselves show very little reflexiveness until the end of the story when the 2-D world of the animations begins to coincide with the 3-D world around them.

The short has gained significant exposure on the YouTube video sharing website where it is frequently posted without Hertzfeldt's consent. Hertzfeldt has expressed disappointment in this practice because the versions are often of poor or low quality and he offers a volume DVD set of his collected works for a reasonable price on his website.

The film was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film in 2000.