Based on the classic Jewish folk tales of Chelm, the award-winning animated short Village of Idiots is a funny and philosophical cartoon that appeals to both adults and children.

“Outsiders call Helm the village of idiots,” Shmendrick explains, “but our rabbi said we were a city of natural geniuses, with out own way of figuring things out.”

With muted, mesmerizing illustrations and heavy accordion-based music, Village of Idiots shares the world as seen through the eyes of Shmendrick, a foolish man who patches his roof with the soles of shoes, as he sets out on a journey away from home for the first time. But along his journey from Helm to Warsaw, Shmendrik comes upon a city that is eerily similar to the one he left behind. The rest of us might think Shmendrik just took a wrong turn and ended up back home, but for Shmendrik, this discovery sheds light on holy teachings: “The Talmud tells us that the world everywhere is the same,” he recalls.

Created by an Oscar-winning animator/director, Village of Idiots won the International Film Critics Prize and was heavily praised for “expressing the eternal and metaphysical questions of the human condition in a subtle, humorous and concise way.”

Ultimately, this enjoyable film puts forth a profound question: Is the grass really greener on the other side of the fence; or do we just need to reevaluate the side we’re already on?